Welcome to Ooh!
by Xantos Stones
Summary: When half-demon, half-human named Rue shows up on Ooo... Marshall Lee instantly takes notice. However, as the two attempt to get to know each other and enjoy the chance at an eternal friendship, dark secrets that each attempted to keep secret begin to bubble to surface. Do Marshall Lee and Rue have what it takes to face the darkness within themselves or will they be overcome by it?
1. Chapter 1: Rue - The Flame Demon

This story was created by myself and a good friend of mine (Rouge Sicario). Read and enjoy

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**Welcome to Ooh!**

**Chapter #1: Rue - The Flame Demon**

Rue stumbled forward when she spawned in the outskirts of the forest. She caught her balance and backed away when she realized she was standing in front of some-wait… What even was that? Some purple creature sticking its tongue out? What? Okay then moving along…

She walked around it, and it kept staring at her creepily, so she refused to look back. When she reached a large field, there was a girl and a shape-shifting cat fighting off a giant penguin - Wait this was just getting weirder… With a flick of her wrist, the thing caught fire and out popped some blue wizard lady who then used his hair to fly off.

The demoness looked over at the girl and her cat, then cracked a cocky smirk. "Looked like you needed a little help! You okay there?"

Fionna and Cake turned to look at the new arrival. "Nah," she said dismissively, "I could have handled her on my own. I do it all the time." Then, Fionna looked Rue up and down curiously and a startled expression crossed her face. "What… race exactly…are you?" she asked cautiously.

Cake was silent, simply looking the new girl up and down. She had created fire out of nothing, or so it seemed. It was quite possible she was a flame elemental out to cause trouble. Anybody who was anybody knew that there was only one thing you could be certain of whenever you bumped into a flame. They were evil and out to cause some sort of chaos.

"Half demon, half human." Rue responded bluntly in a slightly monotonic voice. It wasn't a question she had to answer often because she usually just said it herself… She was a little surprised that the other had actually asked her…

"According to what I've seen so far, I'm going to assume you're human…" The demoness held out her hand, looking down at her burgundy nails. Remembering she didn't introduce herself, she then brought the palm of her other hand to her forehead. "I'm Rue by the way… You are?" She straightened up and held her hand properly so the other girl could shake it.

She glanced over at Cake and noticed her glaring, refraining from hissing at her. It kind of bothered her seeing that she was being judged already… However, she didn't feel the need to make a bad impression… Yet…

"Half… human," Fionna repeated the words, with a voice filled with wonder. "I… thought I could see some human in you." She fell silent in thought as she continued to look at the new stranger.

Cake's face darkened, as she paid more attention to the second part of the answer "demon". Flame Demon - Adding the word flame was bad enough… but a demon one? She shuddered, her lips curling in contempt. The fact that this Flame Demon was pretending to be human, and did indeed look a bit like one, would cause Fionna to drop her guard unconciously. It was therefore up to her to watch Fionna's back.

"I'm Fionna," Fionna replied before tilting her head at Rue's outstretched hand, confused. "There's nothing in your hand so I can only assume that you want me to agree to some sort of pact. We never discussed anything of the sort though."

Rue knit her eyebrows and tilted her head as well, lowering her hand awkwardly. Maybe she didn't know that they were supposed to shake hands…? Eh, different planets have different rules… She slowly shook her head, then looked down at Cake again.

What the heck was up with this cat? She'd barely even said anything to her… Maybe she had something against her already? Maybe she wanted to hurt that ice thing herself… In fact, what the heck was that as well? What the heck was everything?! This place didn't make sense at all…

"…Nice… Cat… She seems she has pretty cool powers…" The social awkwardness kicked in… Great…

As Rue lowered her hand, Fionna apologized. "I'm sorry. I just have no idea what in the world you are doing with your hand. Didn't mean to make you feel awkward." Then, hearing the tone she turned to glance at Cake, who was giving Rue a deathglare. "What the glob, Cake!" Fionna said in surprise and irritation. "Stop treating Rue so disrespectfully. You didn't even introduce yourself to her!"

Cake frowned and said, "This girl is obviously a Flame Demon." She didn't say any more because that should have been enough to make her entire point clear.

Fionna frowned and then turned to Rue, "Sorry about Cake. She isn't typically like this. Why ARE you here by the way? I don't think I've seen you around Ooh before."

Rue chuckled quietly at Cake getting yelled at, but immediately stopped when Cake made her statement. Flame demon? That was a new way to put it…

"So you think I'm a flame demon? Oh honey…" The demoness lifted an eyebrow and gave a devious grin before disappearing into a shadow and grabbing Cake's leg. "I'm also a shadow demon…" She reappeared with a snap right behind the cat.

Fionna's question was a little out of the ordinary… Rue took a few steps away from Cake, crossing her arms. "Just adventuring… I go a lot of places… I don't know where I end up most of the time, though…"

Fionna's eyebrow shot up as Rue dissapeared and reappeared. Then a frown crossed her face and she scolded, "Hey. Nobody messes with Cake unless they want to mess with me. I have absolutely zero tolerance for that sort of thing."

Then she pondered. "You go to a lot of places? Don't you have like a home or family who would miss you if you just up and dissapeared? Sure I've gone off a few times myself but I've always told Gumball and Marshall where I was going, or at least when I'd be back. Plus, I always take Cake with me. Not knowing where you are going… sounds lonely."

"Well…" The demoness lowered her head sadly. "I… Don't exactly… Have… A family…"

She always knew that her dad was still somewhere out there going about his demon duties but she wasn't even sure if her mom was alive or not… If they were both alive, what ever happened to them? Why didn't they ever come help her? The thoughts she thought were seriously pathetic were making her tear up a little…

"There… Seriously aren't that many people who care for me…" Rue finished and wiped a bit of the tears from the corners of her eyes, trying to be as discreet as possible.

Fionna's eyes widened as she looked at Rue pityingly. "So you just wander around searching for some sort of home? Some place where you can belong? Or… do you wander around purposelessly." She fell silent for a long moment before asking. "If you don't have anyone to watch over or protect, and you don't have a home or friends, and you don't even know where you are going,… what is it that drives you?"

Cake said nothing, her mind still dwelling on the fact that Rue hadn't denied being a fire demon. Fire Demon = Fionna in trouble. So as she saw the tears, and Fionna beginning to feel sorry for the monster, she shuddered. This girl, whoever she was, was a master of deception… and Fionna was falling for it; hook, line, and sinker.

"That's easy… H-hope…" Her voice cracked a little… Curses! She usually didn't show any weaknesses this early when meeting people… 'Why did they have to discuss such a touchy subject?' She whined in her head, then muttered, "…I did… Have a home… Back in… Hyrule… If you know where that is… B-but…" She paused as her knees wobbled a little. Thaaaat wasn't a good sign… "…I burned it to save myself…"

Rue lowered her head slightly to keep some hair in her face, mainly to hide the fact that she was now on the brink of sobbing uncontrollably. Cake still seemed to be glaring at her, and that only made things worse. Maybe she still didn't understand…? Was that cat even capable of the same emotions as humans? …did it even matter…?

Cake winced, winced. She actually had to bite her tongue to keep from saying anything that she might regret. The demon was an incredible actress, that she had to admit. If she wasn't so determined to protect Fionna, she almost definitely would be falling for the girl's lies by this point. Fionna, it was obvious, had

"Hope for what exactly?" Fionna asked, quietly. "What are you looking for, Rue?" And then she heard the second part and winced. "You burned your home?" She glanced at Cake for a second who mouthed the words Fire Demon. Fionna glared back, before walking out and setting her hand on her shoulder. "You don't know me, but I'm a hero. I'm more than willing to help you if you need it." The she offered her hand. "Friends?"

The demoness smiled shyly through her tears, then awkwardly took Fionna's hand in her shaky own. "F-friends…" Rue brushed the hair from her face and straightened herself to try to look more professional as well as just a bit more intimidating. Noticing her eyes were still pinkish from crying, she quickly pulled the collar of her jacket up and buried her face in it.

Releasing the girl's hand, she glanced at Cake again and wondered how long it'd take to befriend someone like her, maybe just settle for gaining her trust… Were flame people bad in their land or something? Maybe that was it… It seemed like it… The demoness slowly realized she didn't answer Fionna's other question, so she sniffed and carried on.

"I just… Hope… I guess I hope for something good to happen…? Maybe I can get more money so I can get a new home…?" Her voice was still raspy… Oh well, at least Fionna didn't seem like she'd judge too much…

Fionna watched as Rue attempted to compose herself with a small frown upon her face. She remembered all to well what it felt like to be homeless and feel like you didn't belong anywhere. After Marshall had kicked her out of her treehouse she had searched everywhere for a new home, even moving into the Candy Kingdom for a while. Eventually she'd met Cake and the two of them had been able to drive Marshall out, but the scar from that year of hopelessness had never truly gone away. It was shortly afterwards that she had decided to become a hero.

Cake's glare at Rue had become more of a scowl at herself as she wondered if she just might be judging the emotionally frail Fire Demon a little too harshly. However, she was troubled by the statement that Rue had had to burn down her home in order to save her own life. What in Glob's name was that supposed to mean? And…who had been trying to kill her?

Fionna smiled gently and said, "Well, your hope hasn't let you down so far. And something good has happened, you met me The Greatest Hero in Ooh. You got a place to stay while you are here?"

Rue didn't hesitate to shake her head. "I -I just spawned here… I don't know anything about these lands…" The creepy purple thing with the bulging eyes and the long tongue was probably the only thing she knew of besides there's a forest there.

Why was the cat so displeased with her? She gets nothing but some sour face from this talking furball! It was seriously getting on her nerves now… She knit her eyebrows and took a few more steps back. Hopefully she wouldn't snap in front of them… The devil knows what'd happen if she did… AKA she knew she'd turn into the devil…

"Well," Fionna said as she glanced around. "Few people probably know as much about the surrounding areas as I do. I've personally had countless adventures in these areas. So, if you have nowhere else to stay, I would be more than willing to let you stay with me. Of course…" she glanced over and Cake and shook her head. "It's under the condition that you not let Cake's paranoia bother you. Really can't invite you over if you aren't going to be able to ignore her attitude."

Cake's eyes instantly widened, and she leaned over to Fionna. "I really am not sure it is a good idea to invite a stranger we just met into our house. Just look at her. I'm pretty sure she's currently considering the best way to kill me."

"Cake…" Fionna said with a sigh. "She isn't dangerous. Right, Rue?"

Rue narrowed her eyes. "…Wait… Is it a medical condition? Or is she just usually like this?" She slowly moved her hand back down to its usual place hanging by her side.

When she heard Cake's statement along with Fionna's remark and question, she scoffed and held her chin high. "It depends on if you get on my nerves… I honestly have no promises…" She knew that statement would probably get her to go sleep out in the forest or something… "…But as long as you don't try to attack me or anything, I can pretty much guarantee you'll be safe."

"Not funny, Rue. Not funny at all." Fionna said with a glare. Cake shook her head, and had an "I-told-you-so" look on her face.

Fionna leaned forward and said, "You see, a few years back I was really bad off. Cake found me and helped me get back on my feet again. Since then, she has always tried to make sure a repeat of the past didn't happen. As such, she is incredibly over-protective of me. Plus, the fact that you are both a fire elemental and a demon kinda shoots off bad vibes. All in all, she doesn't know you - you are powerful - you are a demon - you are a fire elemental - all of which could threaten my life. I am willing to trust you, but her number one priority is protect me."

Somehow, the other's words triggered her. The demoness then shot back a glare at Fionna. She really didn't mean to, but her more demonic side was kicking in. Black rings spread around her pupils, making them seem a lot darker.

"You see… I don't mean to do things like this… Sometimes it just happens… And I don't mean to hurt you." Her eyes faded back to normal and her gaze softened slightly. "I… Honestly don't think you could handle me. Maybe it'll be better for me to just go…" Maybe she should bring up the thing of her snapping? It happens quite often actually. It seemed like a good idea… Rue just wasn't 100% sure… She folded her hands together and twiddled her thumbs, uncomfortable with the situation.

For the first time, Cake's hostile expression dropped, and was replaced instead with a look of utter bewilderment. She had done such a good job of brainwashing Fionna into wanting to take her home, and now she was ruining all of the acting. She was obviously an amazing actress, so what the heck was going on?

"That's part of being a fire elemental," Fionna replied soothingly. "Passion boils on the surface. Don't worry about this though. We're friends, and the first rule of friendship is being willing to trust one another." She stepped forward and set her hand on Rue's. "I have faith in you. You wouldn't hurt me or Cake. Come on. My house is this way."

Wait a second… What she said didn't get her hit in the face by either of them?! That was quite a pleasant surprise! She nodded slowly and smiled at Fionna, then proceeded to follow her.


	2. Chapter 2: The Treehouse

**Chapter #2: The Treehouse**

Rue glanced back at Cake who, for once, wasn't scowling at her. That… Was weird… But good at the same time… The demoness flashed a grin back at her, then looked back to where they were going.

The house was almost the size of a small castle, which was pretty surprising. She gawked at it before turning to Fionna and asking, "How could you afford such a thing?! It looks amazing!"

Cake didn't return the smile, but she didn't scowl either. She had a lot on her mind, and she was still very suspicious… but she was beginning to accept the fact that this girl might not be as ingenious of an actor as she had originally assumed. She might actually be judging the girl a little too harshly. When Fionna once again offered the treehouse, Cake didn't object, but she did make a mental note that she wouldn't be sleeping that night. Hard to watch over Fionna while asleep.

Fionna looked proudly up at the house before replying, "It was made by a friend of mine a couple of hundred years family has been using it for several generations now. It's our family home. Pretty much everything good or bad that has happened to me throughout my lifetime… this tree has always been my place of refuge. It protects against evil."

"Woah… It… It's amazing…" She really didn't know what else to do besides gape at the house. It really was something extremely special… Huh… The thought of her own home crossed her mind… Maybe she shouldn't have built it out of wood… In the middle of a forest…

Rue let go of Fionna's hand and proceeded forward once again, then touched the outside wall in awe. "…Is it still alive…?" Her voice was quiet for pretty much no apparent reason. She brushed the hair from her face and looked up. It was a lot taller once she got a lot closer…

"Yeah," Fionna said with a proud smile. "It will continue to grow forever as long as it doesn't get cut down. My children, and their children, and their children's children, will add onto the house as the tree grows until who knows… One day this tree may support a vast city of my descendants." She chuckled as she looked at it. "It's where my family belongs…" She trailed off abruptly and leaned against the tree, depression creeping across her face.

Cake leaned over to Rue and whispered quietly, "You aren't the only one to have had a rough life, Rue. I may not know much about it, and she acts so strong, but Fionna has had to deal with more than anybody her age ever will. You turn out to be a friend, few people need them as much as Fionna here. That is also why, if you turn out not to be… I will protect Fionna with my life."

Looking back at Cake, Rue turned around slowly and leaned back on the door. She pursed her lips, slowly placing her hands in her pockets. "…Everyone has baggage, you know… Just… Some worse than others…" She shrugged and tilted her head slightly. "…No one has a perfect life…"

"Yeah," Cake replied quietly, her face set. Apparently the nice approach really wasn't worth it when addressing a flame demon after all. "But most people, when they end up losing everything end up like you, wander around unhappy and obsess over what has gone wrong in their lives. Fionna has been attempting to move on and grow. You mess that up; you deal with me. Got it, glow devil?" Then she turned and walked back over to Fionna.

Rue opened her mouth as if she were about to bark at Cake as she walked away, but then closed her mouth and growled lowly. "You're not worth my time right now, furball…" She muttered, glaring back at the cat.

Fionna did seem like a sweet girl, but why would she befriend some animal like that? Sure, she can talk and shapeshift, but she was really, REALLY jerky. So she was being nice one second and she suddenly turns her back again? At least Rue knew what to expect now…

Fionna sighed as Cake walked back over to her and stood looking up at the tree. "I hate to say it," Fionna said quietly, "but I keep talking about my children as if they are guaranteed to happen. What if I'm going to be the last one on my family line?"

"You are only fourteen, Fionna! You have several years before you can even get married. Finding a good man can't be THAT hard." Of course, Cake understood what Fionna meant though. She may very well be the last human, and the word family brought back thoughts better left buried.

Rue stayed against the door, listening awkwardly to their conversation. Wait… This girl was only fourteen?…Was she really that slow…? She shook her head in disbelief, but stared intently at them.

She honestly thought it'd be extremely easy for Fionna to find someone. She was skilled in using such a weapon, after all… But… Were there even any cool guys in this sort of place? So far she'd mentioned some guy named Marshall and something about a gum guy…? They both sounded… Odd…

Fionna sighed and pushed open the door, stopping for a moment to look at the only thing that wasn't a piece of loot in this room, a picture from four years ago, of her and her parents. It hung on the wall behind the treasure. "Home sweet home," Fionna said quietly as she walked in. Then she turned and proceeded to climb up the ladder. She found to her surprise that the trapdoor at the top was locked.

"What's the password?" Came a snarky response from above.

Rue bowed her head as Fionna walked past her and opened the door, then quietly followed. She could tell that now she really wasn't feeling good, so it was probably best not to question it right now.

The room of loot made it tempting to shove something in her pocket and bolt off, but she knew she'd probably never be trusted by Fionna again, let alone be allowed in the treehouse. Rue stopped in her tracks and gaped at the treasure.

She jerked around when Fionna said the door was locked and almost went into full on panic mode. The response from above made her growl that gradually turned into a scream. "yyyYYYOU BETTER LET US IN OR ELSE I'LL BUST THIS DOWN AND PUNCH YOU IN THE FACE!"

Rue was honestly just trying to intimidate him, maybe she went a bit too far…? She walked over to the ladder and climbed up as well, then started knocking furiously on the closed opening. "OPEN UP!"

"Marshall, if that is you… Open the door would you?" Fionna said impatiently. "I have a guest here and I really do NOT have time for any of your games right now." She shivered at Rue's reaction and said, "Hey. Don't worry about it. Marshall does this sort of thing all the time. It's nothing to freak out over!"

Cake remained below, watching the two girls interacting in silence. She really, deeply, truly wanted Rue to be who she appeared to be. This kind of a friend would truly be a good thing for the girl.

"Oh come on," a male vampire said with a smirk as he pushed the door open a crack. "Why in the world would I do something so consider…" He trailed off as he noticed the girl behind Fionna. Instantly, he opened the door and floated down next to her. "Hey," he said with a wink of an eye. "Names Marshall Lee. I'm the Vampire King. Nice to meet ya."

"Ugh…" Rue muttered as she climbed up the ladder, glaring at the vampire. She hoped he wasn't one of the kinds who decided that it was fun just to creep people out, because that was her thing… It was then she was hit with the thought, "Maybe that's why those two can tolerate me so well…" The demoness shuddered, then proceeded to rub her temples.

Her expression gradually softened as she looked Marshall up and down. His dark shaggy hair was a lot like hers when she was turned into a male due to a gray wizard's stupid spell… The way he dressed kind of resembled how she did, that red flannel and dark skinny jeans… Rue just tended to wear her leather jacket pretty much 24/7… Overall, when she looked at him, she saw herself. Maybe he even acted like her…

On that note, she returned the smirk and held out her hand. "Rue. Just… Rue…" Sadly she didn't have a really fancy title considering she didn't know her mother or even what kind of demon she was… That thought didn't get into her head and bounce around for a long time as often as other things did… She was honestly extremely busy most of the time, but everything crashed down on her at night. Maybe it was because that was a good time to reflect…?

"So?" Marshall Lee said as he floated around her, looking the new girl up and down. "You totally look like my kinda fun." He frowned and said, "I mean…' He leaned in and whispered into her ear, "You look like the kind of girl who would enjoy a romp through the night causing chaos wherever you go. Would I be right in guessing that you are also a demon?"

Marshall leaning in and whispering to Rue in the way that he was made Fionna seriously uncomfortable, she had to admit. Marshall seemed altogether too interested in her visitor. He had never responded like that before, and she was still slightly in shock that he had opened the door in the first place. She had been pretty sure she was going to need to have Cake knock it down so that she could have a good-natured battle with him.

"Alright, keep away." Cake ordered, growing tall and pushing Marshall away from Rue. "She has had a long day, and Fionna is going to show her around the house. So buzz off back to whatever cave you crawled out of this time." Although she was not sure yet what she thought of Rue, one thing that Cake was absolutely adamant about was the fact that the last thing Rue needed was Marshall's influence. Although she hated to admit it, she didn't dislike Marshall… but one of him was way more than enough.

Rue cupped Marshall's face and flashed a fanged grin, then whispered back to him, "Right you are~" She chuckled and shoved his shoulder with the base of her palm as Cake wrapped her tail around him and pulled him away.

The following things Cake said made her laugh a little louder. "Awww… Poor Marshy lives all by his lonesome in a dark little cave?" She joked, then cupped her mouth and bent over slightly. "All he has is the darkness to keep him company? Awwwww!" The demoness fixed her posture, then stepped up to the vampire and ruffled his hair, then jerked her hand away so he couldn't swat at her.

"And Cake… It's fine… I don't mind him at all…" She placed a hand on Cake's tail and gently tugged at it to try to get her to release him. "Besides, I'm not THAT tired after all… I only sleep for like, what? Two hours at a time? It's fine!"

Marshall frowned and swatted at the cat impatiently, before flipping so that he was floating upside-down. "Wanna know why I dropped by out of the blue?"

"Sure," Fionna said with a grin, while shooting a smile at Cake. Cake, however, was looking too annoyed to return said smile. So, Fionna shrugged and turned back to Marshall. "What's going on?"

"I was thinking you and I," Then he shot a glance towards Rue, "and this new roommate of yours, or course, might go out and have some fun tonight. There's a full moon, music festival is going on…" His eyes flashed red and his sharp teeth glittered. "Anything could happen tonight."

Fionna looked uncertain. "I don't know… Rue here isn't the most social of people. I really don't want to make her uncomfortable right now."

"She's fine with it, aren't you?" Marshall said as he floated over to her again. "After all…" He leaned in and whispered, "Causing mischief makes any demon comfortable, right?"

"It seems like you know me a lot better than they do…" Rue chuckled and slipped her hand into Marshall's. "I'm in." She knew that one of them would probably say something, so she turned back to them and said, "…It's fine, though… Some people just click better than others…" On that note, she gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

Her cocky grin faded as a realization hit her. It seemed like Fionna and Cake were giving off the vibe that he wasn't really trustworthy of… Pretty much anything… To her, Marshall seemed perfectly fine, and even if he wasn't, it'd be pretty easy for Rue to handle. She glanced at him for a moment, observing him. He… Did seem to have some sort of bad potential… Fionna and Cake probably knew, but this was oddly a chance she'd be willing to take.

She looked back over at Fionna once again. Just a trustworthy, kind, young heroine… Rue knew in her heart that she should definitely listen to Fionna, but there was just something about Marshall that was so intriguing to her… It was then she promised herself to tell either of them if something goes wrong, obviously something would…

"Well, in that case, I suppose we could go," Fionna said with a smile, despite Cake's glare that plainly said get-that-girl-away-from-Marshal! But Fionna didn't have it in her to argue the case. She understood what it would feel like to find out that she wasn't the last human, and also that it was likely Marshall had never met another half-demon half-human before. If Rue didn't object, why should she?

Marshall glanced between the three of them before saying, "Actually, hmm… I'll hang out with you some other night Fionna. Tonight I just want to show Rue around." He shot her a mischievous smirk. "Show her the kind of things we do for fun in Ooh."

Fionna blinked, and frowned. "But… you came here to invite me out for the night…" She instantly protested. "How come you want to leave me behind now?" She sounded seriously disappointed, and Cake could barely contain her smirk. Even she couldn't figure out who it was that Fionna was more interested in, Gumball or Marshall. Every time she thought she had, something like this happened.

"Relax Fi," Marshall said, floating over to her. "We hang out all the time. I'll make it up to you later." He flashed her his 'evil' smile. "Come on. Don't get all upset over this. Unless, you really are swooning over me?"

"As if," Fionna said, her joking smile returning as she pushed Marshall playfully. "Just, don't get her into too much trouble, ok? This is only her first night in Ooh after all."

Rue flashed her fanged grin back at Fionna. "It's fine. Don't worry about me… If anything, you should worry about Marshall here~ I don't think he could handle me…" She chuckled, then added, "I'm joking, I'm joking… We'll be fine, okay?"

Fionna seemed unsure about a lot of this…. Rue figured that she probably had something going on with Marshall in the past… Or maybe they were in one of those flirtationship kind of things? Then again, Marshall seemed like the type to flirt with pretty much anyone he'd come across, so maybe not… But still, there was a good chance…

Cake on the other hand always made Rue feel unsure about pretty much everything. She flat-out said that she was Fionna's guardian and made sure that nothing would ever happen to her. Hopefully, her going out with Marshall for a while wouldn't hurt Fionna's feelings…

"So, shall we?" Bowing slightly, she stepped to the side. "After all, you do claim to be a king, Your Majesty…" A chuckle left her crimson lips once again. "After you~"

Fionna, feeling a lot more at ease after Marshall's joke and Rue's assurance, nodded her head. "Make sure you don't get too carried away. If you let him, Marshall will often go a little bit too far without realizing it."

Cake watched with the scowl on her face. It felt seriously weird to have such an expression for so long. It seriously wasn't like her, but every time she seemed to come to terms with the situation, it got a heck of a lot more complicated. Why couldn't things just slow down for one second?

Marshall glanced between Fionna and Cake silently for a minute. He really did like hanging out with the two of them, and she was just so much fun to tease. At the same time, she was a goody-two-shoes, which limited thier potential fun by quite a bit. Finding another hybrid like him? That was good news he had never expected to hear.

"Right," he said with a chuckle as he stepped through the door. Then he glanced back at her with a smirk and said, "You only want me in front because you have no idea what I am planning."

Rue glanced back at Fionna and Cake one last time before turning back to Marshall. It was a little expected that Cake kept scowling… She figured her face probably froze like that or something. She smirked once again at Marshall and playfully shoved him, then whined jokingly, "Well you said you'd show me around! How could poor little me find my own way around here?"

She knew she sounded extremely stupid, having been considered a monster for so long… But that thought didn't seem to attack her at the moment… That was good… The demoness nudged him again, then leaned in close and whispered, "C'mon… Lead the way, Your Majesty…" Rue bowed her head once again, letting her hair fall in front of her eyes.


	3. Chapter 3: Evening Flight

**Chapter #3: Evening Flight**

Marshall grinned, and flashed a thank-you smile back at Fionna before closing the door behind Rue. Instantly, his eyes flashed. "Now that we've ditched the do-gooders we should go off and do something crazy." His mind seemed to race. "We could…terrify some people. That's always fun. There are always people daring each other to spend the night in the cemetary this close to Halloween. Or… as I told Fionna, there is a party. We could go crash it. Or…" His eyes flashed excitedly, "we could sneak into the castle and steal Gumball's crown. That would totally drive him crazy. Oh, there are so many options!" He did a flip excitedly before stopping to look at Rue again with a smile. "What do you want to do?"

Still smirking, Rue took off her jacket, exposing her large, leathery black wings. She spread them and grabbed Marshall around his waist, then responded, "Tell you what… Let's try to do as much as we can in our limited amount of time…"

The second after she said that, she suddenly let go of him and looked around. "Now… Where's this place you call the 'Candy Kingdom'?" The demoness booped Marshall's nose then began flying upwards to see if she could get a better view of the area.

For a second, Marshall simply stared at Rue, his mouth literally hanging open. Then he frowned and said, "NO FAIR! WHY DO YOU GET TO HAVE AWESOME WINGS!" The only wings he had were the ones that he got when he transformed into a bat, and he found it hard to look intimidatingly evil as a tiny little bat.

Then, being bopped on the nose, he blinked and chuckled. "Over there," he pointed in the direction of a tall tower in the distance. "But there really isn't much going on over there at the moment. Unless, of course," he smirked, "you want to begin the night's adventures by terrifying some candy folk."

Rue simply chuckled again at Marshall's response again, then responded with "Well… I'm from Hell, so… I'm probably a different kind of demon than you are…"

She paused to outstretch a hand to him. "So, do you think you can keep up with me or do you need me to stay with you?" The demoness tipped her head to the side and grinned as if she knew exactly when the world was going to crash down.

This kind of torment that Marshall found entertaining was a lot different than what Rue used to do… He found joy in terrorizing souls while Rue went straight in for the kill. Literally. She would murder around ten people a night worldwide… She was a killer. Was. She was mostly past that, but sometimes she became extremely bloodthirsty…

"Hell…" Marshall frowned for a moment, lost in thought before responding. "I'm from another section of that same dimension actually. That's a part I was told never to enter, though. You may have heard of the country that I live in. It's called The Nightosphere?"

"Keep up?" he said with a grin. "I may not have your fancy wings, but that is exactly WHY I am going to so be able to outfly you. I don't need to use a single muscle." Then he lifted off the ground and took off in the direction of the Candy Kingdom.

"Also," he called back behind him. "One of the reasons the two of us are so different could actually have to do with the fact that most of my life wasn't spent in the Dimension of the Night. I've actually spent the vast majority of my time here on Ooh."

Rue didn't bother to respond just yet… Hanging her head just to prevent Marshall from seeing her laughing like an idiot, she burst off high up into the skies with incredible speed. The wind whistling in her ears was extremely comforting… She dived down particularly to gain speed ending up a lot further ahead of him.

The demoness glanced back at him and yelled, "It also explains why you're not as hardcore, pretty boy! Now tell me more about this 'Nightosphere' you speak of…" Pressing her arms to her sides, she took a plunge downwards, almost at the outskirts of the kingdom.

In all honesty, Rue hadn't really heard much talk about the Nightosphere when she was down in Hell…. But why did he refer to himself as 'The King'? Sure, Rue referred to herself as 'The Queen of Hell' sometimes even though it was Persephone, but she was always the one the throne if she decided to take a vacation or was pulled away for some reason…

Marshall was quiet for a moment as he allowed himself to slow down slightly and watch Rue fly through the skies. He had to admit he remembered the days when flying had been the same way for him. But... after a thousand years of doing something, no matter how cool, a lot of the magic had to disappear. Watching somebody who had been at it much less time, reminded him of his youthful days.

"Hardcore?" He repeated the word as if it were some kind of challenge. "Girl, my upbringing has absolutely no affect on how core I currently am. Back in my four hundreds, I was the most hardcore, terrifying demon anybody had ever heard of. Killing, bloodshed, violence, terror in the streets, everybody running terrified. I was the King of Nightmares. Yes, that is where my title of king came from, as technically I am only a prince. But that... was a very lonely life, and after nearly one hundred years of it..." he trailed off quietly. "Things had to change."

Rue stopped flying once he started talking again, her goofy smile faded. She was only 19… So far, she was extremely young for a demon… Sadly, she understood his situation completely… She flew back up a little and dove towards Marshall, stopping a few feet before she could crash into him.

"I-… I understand what you mean…" The demoness lowered her head and tugged at the cloth that covered her mouth.

In her heart, she knew she should really tell him that she was a murderer only a few years ago and is still considered one, but… There was a high probability that would scare him off… Rue placed a hand on Marshall's shoulder sympathetically and mumbled, "I'm sorry…"

"Hey," Marshall said, his snarky grin once again appearing on his face. "It was 500 years ago. I got over that a few hundred years ago. I've lived a pretty awesome and wild life since them, and I really don't miss the hardcore much anymore. Haven't even had to worry about the madness for over a hundred years."

Then he paused and looked at her quielty. "It's just this. If you want a home, friends, family, joyful life… There are just some parts of who you are that you must learn to get rid of." He set his hand on her shoulder. "And there will always be people who do not understand. Even now, my father refuses to look at me, ashamed I gave up my title as King of Nightmares. But, ya know, the lives belong to you and me, and not to anybody else. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

Then, as if realizing he was saying a lot of strange stuff to a girl he barely knew, quickly added "That's what I wish somebody had told me long ago. Woulda prevented a lot of issues."

"Y-Yeah… You're right… My… Experience was a lot like yours…" She moved her hand up to the back of her neck and rubbed it uncomfortably. "…but the issue is I'm still going through your 400 phase…" Her voice trailed off. She backed away a few feet to pull away from his reach, keeping her head low so that he couldn't see her face.

So her secret was out… There was a good chance he'd be okay with this, and a good chance he'd find her extremely creepy. Rue inferred from listening to his story that he'd probably be sympathetic to her, but wasn't completely sure if he'd try to hurt her.

"…I… I'm sorry…" She tried to meet his eyes but couldn't find the courage. "…I'm a monster… I-… I should just…" Rue pulled her wings to her body and plummeted downwards.

"Hey! Hey! Hey!" Marshall cried out dropping down and catching her in his arms. "What are you trying to do, scare a guy to death?" He looked down at her with a smile and said, "Relax, and please don't do that again." He pointed ahead at the Candy Kingdom and said, "So I was thinking we start by stealing Gumball's crown. His idiotic guards will come after us, and when they do, we can have a contest to see which of us can terrify more than the other, and who can make a guard scream the loudest."

He landed on the ground and set Rue on her feet gently. "Sound like fun, Rue-Demon from Hell!" He said with a smirk, "though it may not be a good idea. After all…" He grinned evilly. "I would totally kick your butt."

Rue yelped and instinctively buried her face in Marshall's chest when he caught her. When he set her down, she reluctantly pulled away from him, her face a deep shade of red. His embrace was warm and comforting… It was really something she wouldn't be able to get out of her head for a while… She gripped his left arm with her hand and squeezed it, still a little uneasy about admitting that to him… He seemed to take it lightly, so she figured she should try to brush that little incident off.

"…Sounds like those guards are complete idiots…" She cracked a smile again. "…Oh please!" You'd never be able to scare more people than I could!" The demoness jerked her head to the side and closed her eyes. When she reopened them, they were a murky shade of onyx, the little bit of light in them constantly swirling. "Oh honey… It's not polite to underestimate someone…" The demoness glanced down at her now lengthened blood red nails, then back up at Marshall with a smirk.

Marshall watched her transform with a smile, raising his eyebrows at her transformation. He was still slightly lost over what had just happened, though he refused to let it show at all. The two of them had been in a conversation, and then she'd suddenly tried to hurl herself into the ground. How in the world had a girl with such destructive self tendencies managed to survive so long on her own?

He also couldn't get out of his mind what it felt like to hold the poor confused girl in his arms. She was so much like he had been back before breaking free of his father's influence, and he found himself desperately wanting to help her through the things that he'd had to face on his own. "You aren't the only one who can transform into something awesome in order to terrify people!" Marshall called. He promptly pulled out a strange amulet that he slid over his head. He instantly grew to twice his size and became about a hundred times more terrifying. "Let's do this thing."

Rue looked up at Marshall and crossed her arms, switching her balance onto one foot. "What're you supposed to be? The literal Batman?" She teased. Her voice was now multiple pitches, all giving out an unsettling effect that tended to raise hairs on others.

"…I can do more, but I don't want to go on a bloody rampage… Don't push me too far, pretty boy… Or else I might end up harming you…" In her more demonic form, thoughts about concern and sympathy for others didn't usually occur unless something major had happened.

It was quite likely that she might end up burning a few buildings down or destroying them with dark magic, most likely killing civilians… It was painful being reckless, and her morals would soon hit her like an icy blade to the back of her neck. Something would happen. She'd end up emotionally crashing again, probably in front of him. It had happened various times in front of others, hopefully he'd understand it was completely out of her control…

"Don't boast before you lose, little girl. I am the King of Nightmares, and when it comes to scaring… I am God." Marshall instantly spread out his arms and dashed across the grass towards the Candy Kingdom.

This object he was wearing was the only thing that he had taken with him from the Nightosphere, and was also one of only two of its kind. His father was the owner of the other. In all actuality, it was quite similar to Rue's demon transformation. It made the wearer stronger, more horrifying, and a lot more atrocious. It did this by burying things like fear, morality, and conscious deep inside the subconscious, in order to get them out of the way and allow the wearer to do things he otherwise wouldn't be able to.

For those inexperienced to it, it resulted in madness and a complete loss of identity. For experts like Marshall, it simply permitted him a slight reprieve from the emotions he typically used to govern his life. It made him cooler, and more intense. For short spans of time, he found it awesome.

As he ran, he called back, "And one more rule, if any bystander or guard gets hurt, it is negative one hundred points. Since the max is barely 150, it would be an immediate forfeit."

Rue flew upwards and fell from the sky once again, this time landing on Marshall's shoulder. She flopped back and poked his cheek, whining, "Aww, c'mon, pretty boy! 100 points? Really?" The demoness pouted, then slid off of him, rotating her body in midair much like a cat and landing on her feet.

"…Fine…" She finally agreed, holding a finger up and adding something else, "I get to make a rule… Winner gets loser to do whatever they want. Must be within reason, though… Got it?" The demoness chuckled, her hand falling back to her side.

Rue glanced around and spotted a citizen who was… Pretty much a walking donut… This place was incredibly weird… She tilted her head in confusion for a moment before turning into a shadow and appearing right behind him, grabbing him by the wrist. "What's a little cutie like you doing out at night?" She turned them around and beamed, her fangs gleaming in the moonlight. "You should really be inside… How misfortunate for you…"

Rue could feel their tiny, soft wrists shaking and just how close they were to screaming. Slowly, she leaned in and bared her canines, then let out a low hiss that gradually grew louder. He immediately ripped his hand away from her and ran off screaming, "MONSTER! MONSTER!" Rue chuckled, satisfied, then turned to see if Marshall had made a bit of progress.

Even in his more demonic form, Marshall found himself smiling at his own ingenuity. As it provided a buffer, not just for her but for him as well. The last thing he wanted to do was get so carried away collecting points that somebody ended up getting hurt. This way, they simply could not afford get carried away like that.


	4. Chapter 4: The Lord of Nightmares

**Chapter #4: The Lord of Nightmares**

As Marshall heard this rule, he found himself just a little bit bewildered. Who the heck got to decide whether or not it was within reason, and if it was the person being told what to do… Then… They weren't being forced to do absolutely anything against their will… Which meant that said rule was pointless.

When Marshall looked up, his first reaction was simply his mouth dropping open. Rue had apparently gotten so utterly and completely carried that she had forgotten the plan completely. Then he closed his mouth and simply watched her with a smile. In all his life, he had never met anybody like her, so similar to him… And yet, at the same time, so different.

As she turned to look at him, he instantly dropped back to his normal smirking behavior. "We were supposed to steal the crown and then terrify the banana guards, not random kids on the street. Though," he chuckled in the dark booming monster voice. "That was pretty awesome to watch. And about this rule of yours…" He then proceeded to point out the flaw. "Perhaps we should decide the boundaries BEFORE one of us wins?"

"Oh-right…" Rue flew back over to Marshall and sat on his shoulder once again. "…And the favor thing, nothing that requires killing someone or physically hurting one another…"

She stared up at the giant castle before them, searching for a way they could enter. Remembering she had no clue where the crown was even hidden, and hit herself in the face. "So… Where's this pretty prince's tiara, hmm?" Rue returned the smirk to Marshall as soon as she slid her hand off of her face.

There was an odd sound of beings chanting "Wee Woo" monotonically getting louder. Frowning, Rue slid off of Marshall's shoulder. "What the hell is that supposed to be?" Rue whispered, pointing over at the bundle of yellow things bobbing up and down in the distance. It was probably the source of the "Wee Woo's. Maybe those were the idiot guards he told her about…

"Nothing that requires killing or physically hurting, but emotionally hurting is totes ok." He chuckled darkly. "Sounds to me like exactly the sort of stakes I'd love to play for."

Marshall glanced up at the castle, and a grin crossed his face. "That just so happens to be the best part of this whole adventure. We are going to sneak into Prince Gumball's bedroom and steal it from off of his head while he sleeps. If he wakes up from it… That'll just make things more challenging, but also more fun. I suggest we try not to wake him up until after we've left the room though."

He glanced in the direction he was speaking of and could see the small army of bananas walking towards them. "Yup, that's them. And they are probably coming because of the screams." He transformed back into tiny Marshall and motioned for Rue to follow him into the shadows. "Let's head to the castle this way."

"Emotionally degrading things are usually entertaining…" She added, brushing her bangs from her face. "…Who the heck sleeps with their crown on? It's painful! Have you ever had to go to sleep with this weird spiky piece of metal on your head?" Rue noticed the guards moving closer and gripped Marshall's arm, then whispered, "…Seriously though, what drugs are these guys even on…?"

When Marshall resorted back to his smaller form, Rue gave him a slight nod and turned into his shadow. The guards were moving around blindly with their arms spread out as if they were playing airplanes. She chuckled a little at their stupidity, then remembered she should probably shut up just in case anything else was watching them.

"I imagine he wears it on his head in order to make it that much harder to steal," Marshall replied. "Prince Gumball has always been an odd guy though. He is what one might call a certified Mad Scientist. So understanding his logic is quite impossible."

Marshall glanced out at the Banana Guards and said, "They are the reason Gumball likes to keep Cake and Fionna around. They happen to be two of the most sane, intelligent people around… Though that isn't really saying much."

As Marshall made his way through the shadows, his mind kept wandering to the girl behind him. Although he was trying to act the professional, he had never done this before. He'd never had anybody to do this sort of thing WITH. He smiled to himself as they arrived at the castle gates. Sure it had taken a thousand years, but he'd finally found somebody he could truly be himself around. That was worth the wait.

The weather was oddly cool for a late summer night… Bits of clouds stippled the night sky, blocking out some of the stars. It was really such a beautiful night for such destruction…

Rue slipped through the gates and jumped out from Marshall's shadow, glancing around once more to make sure there was still no one important (or somewhat intelligent) watching. She cracked open the gate just enough for Marshall to slip through and gestured for him to hurry up.

Over the course of various dimension hoppings, Rue had met many demons like her, but none the least bit like Marshall. They all were bloodthirsty, probably still were bloodthirsty… It was surprising that he had outgrown that phase…. Then again, he was like 50 times older than she was…

It had just crossed her mind that they were both immortal, so they could do this for the rest of their lives together if this went well and he took favor to her…

Marshall blinked, bringing himself back to full awareness of his surroundings. "You know," he whispered to Rue as he leaned through the open bars. "I think you may be taking this just a little bit too seriously." He chuckled as he said it. They were sneaking into a prince's bedroom to steal his crown off his head, and then purposefully get chased by the man's guards… and he was telling Rue that she was taking things a little too seriously. The Candy Kingdom truly was a seriously whacked out place.

He reached through the gate, grasped her shoulder gently, and pulled her back out again. "No need for that." He pointed up at a window at the top of the castle. "That room right there belongs to Gumball. All we have to do right now is simply float up." Then he started to lift off the ground. As he did so, he pulled Rue tightly to him. "Two figures floating up, one with massive wings, is quite likely to attract too much attention."

Rue didn't hesitate to throw her arms around Marshall. If he accidentally dropped her, there wouldn't be enough time to spread her wings before she hit the ground… But that wasn't the real reason, she just really loved being close to him. "Riiiiight…" She lifted one eyebrow, now grinning like a love drunk idiot. Rue tilted her head and ruffled his hair. "Yeah, that's the real reason, pretty boy…" Thank the devil that she was lightweight… Mostly because of her needing to be able to fly, but also because she tended to starve herself sometimes…

Marshall, totally unprepared for this, blinked. He said nothing, but a slight frown began to cross his features for the briefest second. Then he let it go as the two of them landed within Prince Gumball's room. He instantly released Rue and walked over to the sleeping prince. "It's me, your worst nightmare," he said with a grin as he stood over the sleeping prince. "Told you that I'd steal your crown someday." Then he reached forward and removed it from the prince's head.

He stood there for a second, as if at a loss as to what to do now, when the door to the room burst open and the head of the Banana Guard Police Force stood there, the only competent person in the entire group, Root Beer Gal. Without another word, Marshall flipped backwards over Rue, and out the window. "Game begins now." He said.

Rue bolted back to the window and screeched at Marshall, "WHAT THE HECK AM I EVEN SUPPOSED TO DO?!" She didn't even realize the volume of her voice was going to wake up Prince Gumball. He awoke immediately, obviously in a state of confusion. Rue glanced back at him with an awkward laugh paired with an uncomfortable smile, then flung herself out the window.

Rue couldn't go for a dive right away or else she'd smash herself into the pavement. So, she bolted upwards into the night sky and got a good look at the situation… The Banana Guards started flailing their arms, screaming their weird police siren noises at the top of their lungs. Wait… Do banana guards even have lungs…? Nevermind that, Rue blinked the nonsense off and hissed at them, "So you've finally come to your senses, hmm? I'll show you!"

Rue's body caught on fire as she spun around in the air like some sort of demonic ballerina. She swooped down, causing them to scream and split up from their tight and just barely organized line, then flew back up before any of them could actually be set ablaze.

Snickering, Rue made a cone with her hands and called out to Marshall, " So how many points do you think that was? Because you're so not going to win this!" Her voice echoed on the buildings. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea for her to go this insane…

Marshall was silent as everything unfurled around him. Rue awakening Gumball, the chaos ensuing around him, Root Beer Gal striding to the window and staring out at him, and then Rue scaring the Banana Guards.

Then he looked at the crown that he held in his hands. He… felt… sick. But not in the normal stomachache sort of way. It was that hollow… empty… emotional pain that few people have the luck of avoiding.

Fire… Marshall's eyes watched as Rue made her final transformation. She was good at this… very good… In fact, too good. His mind began to circulate and he found himself wincing. He looked off into the distance, part of him seriously wanting to run, to get out of there, to go throw up. But he had made a bet, and Marshall Lee never backed down from a bet, no matter what.

He reached down and slid the medallion around his neck once more, transforming into a monster whose sheer appearance was that of a demon from the pits of the Nightosphere. Then he dove down at the banana guards tentacles flailing, and fire coming out of his many eyes.

"The God of Nightmares has come for your souls!" He roared as he lifted one of the banana guards and held it directly above his open mouth with countless sharp teeth looking up at him. The banana guard was frozen in terror, until Marshall let go and he plunged towards the teeth. At this, the banana guard screamed out in absolute, complete, and unparalleled terror. At the last second, Marshall caught it and set it back down on the ground… where it promptly fainted.

Rue was having too much fun scaring the Banana Guards to even notice what state Marshall was in until he put the medallion on once again. Once she thought it was a good time to yell at him, she didn't hesitate to taunt him.

"Hey! You okay, pretty boy?!" Rue tried to make her multi-pitched voice heard over the screaming of the guards. "…Okay with how I'm going to completely annihilate you in this competition?!" She tossed her head back and cackled, then turned into a shadow and appeared right in front of him with a smug smile.

"You see, what's the fun in just scaring one guard at a time when you can just do this?" The demoness turned around and made a gesture as if she were trying to raise something up from the ground. "Rise!" She bellowed as their shadows clung onto their ankles and pulled themselves above the surface. The white dots of their eyes seemed to be the only way out of their soul-devouring darkness. It only caused more screams to erupt from them, causing an uproar of people opening their windows and screaming at the sight itself.

"Now, whaddaya say about you and me ditching this place before His Majesty shows up down here, hmm?" She nudged his elbow, then almost keeled over. The demoness gripped his forearm before she could fall and just ended up staggering forwards. "Sorry-… Raising shadows takes a lot of energy… Hehhh…" With just a snap of her fingers, they retreated back to the ground, leaving just the confused guards and befuddled citizens of the kingdom.

"Ooh! Let's go to that cemetery you were talking about! Unless you have a better idea?" Rue teetered on her feet, waiting for a response, the wicked grin that was now more of just an I'm-satisfied-that-I've-fulfilled-my-demonic-purpose-without-killing-someone-for-once grin on her face.

The response to Rue's statement was instant, and very very unsettling. The look in the monster's eyes was NOT Marshall, nor was it truly kind-hearted or good-natured. It was that of a demon, a powerful demon, the eyes of The Lord of Nightmares.

"I am The Lord of Nightmares," it boomed in a seriously dangerous tone. "I do not need you even attempting to show me up." He whistled as his tentacles floated out in all directions as flames shot out, and terrifying shadows rained down for the skies.

Monstrosities reached up and burst through the ground, turning to leer at the terrified citizens. Zombies proceeded to burst forth as well, trapping the citizens who had tried to flee. "Game over," he said as he snapped his fingers and the army of the death charged.

At the last second, he snapped his fingers one last time and the darkness cleared up instantly as the demon horde from Hell instantly evaporated. There was no screaming to be heard, as everybody in the city was too petrified to say absolutely anything. Then Marshall turned his eyes once more to Rue. "When The Lord of Nightmares comes out to play, he makes other people's attempts at terror look laughable."

Marshall shook her off of him, and stared around him with a dark grin. "Not bad after several hundred years of sleep," he remarked with a look of pride. Then he glanced around himself and declared, "Only one person not yet screaming," and turned his eyes straight towards Rue.

"Rue, get that medallion off of him right away!" Fionna said, suddenly right next to Rue, alongside Price Gumball and Cake, riding on top of a long black unicorn shaped a bit like a rainbow. As they spoke, Marshall lashed out and slammed Rue against the ground forcefully.

Rue stared in awe as Marshall summoned the army. However, a warning signal from her heart popped into her brain. Her eyes turned back to red for a moment, but flickered back to black.

It was extremely hard on Rue to stay in demon mode for too long… She honestly thought she had started a bit early. Now was not the time to have most of her energy drained… The red in her eyes was overriding the black rapidly. Marshall's eyes pierced hers, making her try to back off.

When she heard the voices of her new friends and the prince who was somehow fully awake, it was too late. There was a loud snapping noise of her bones, causing her body to go limp and disintegrate into the shadows. Marshall had killed her without even meaning to…

Out of the many attempts of others who had wanted something, might it have been revenge or just out of pure hatred, no one had ever killed her without drawing blood from her. By draining her energy, it made it quite easy to weaken her body and crush her.

"You blasted idiot! You'll pay!" Could be heard over the sudden roar of flames just a few feet behind Marshall. By spawning again and with full energy and full on rage, she could easily defeat him.

The demoness unsheathed her sword and cut the medallion off of him, the blade scraping the back of his neck. Panting, Rue then flipped him over and pinned him to the ground. Her nails dug deep into his wrists that would probably leave marks.

Fionna, Cake, and Gumball watched in horrified silence as Rue's body slammed against the ground. Fionna reached out, too late, to save her new friend. She lay there on the ground, and Fionna struggled to hold back the tears, jumping down and landing next to Rue. Cake watched from above, the only thoughts rushing through her head being that she had never allowed herself the chance to truly give Rue a chance.

As Fionna reached out, however, the body promptly vanished into smoke, leaving Fionna's hand reaching for nothing. Then there was an explosion, and everyone jerked around to see Rue standing behind Marshall with a wild fire in her eyes. Then the medallion being torn off, and Marshall being slammed to the ground.

Marshall blinked as he found himself pinned down by Rue, and he lowered his head so that it was resting in the dust. He was silent for several moments, not even reacting to the pain racing through his wrists. When he finally did speak, what he said caught everybody off guard.

"Don't hold back. Please, just kill me." Then he was silent, frozen, waiting for it. He may not truly have been in control, but he was still aware of everything that had happened. After many years, he had slipped back into his old persona. That was unacceptable.

"If I cannot control myself, how I react, how I think, when I lose myself to my darkness… When I become a demon, I don't deserve to live. Please, Rue. End it."


	5. Chapter 5: Running Away

**Chapter #5: Running Away**

The demoness blinked rapidly, the red in her eyes fading back in. Her long nails retracted and the weight she was forcing on Marshall decreased dramatically. Just by admitting he wanted to die, Marshall had snapped her out of her demon mode…

"Wh-what?!" She stammered, knitting her eyebrows. "Why the heck would I kill you? I've been looking for someone like you for so long! You're amazing! Did you not see how well you could terrify those guards? Genius! I don't think I could ever do that! Plus you don't care how much of an idiot I am! Marshall, I would never kill you! I can't kill you! I-…" Rue stopped her rambling just before she could say "I love you". Her voice was already extremely raspy and her eyes were just as hot as her entire body felt, still not cooled off from the entire appearing-out-of-the-flames thing…

Rue threw her arms around Marshall and pressed her face into his neck. "I love you!" She finally admitted. Great, the entire kingdom was probably gawking at them strangely after the giant chaotic situation that had just happened, so that made everything a lot worse… Plus, it sounded incredibly stupid for her to say something like that after just a few hours…

But she really meant it, it was extremely hard to find someone who was just like her… He made her feel as if she would never be alone anymore, even if they just ended up almost killing eachother… Thank the devil that she could be easily brought back, though…

"P-please don't h-hurt me… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…" Rue brought Marshall's wrist to her lips and kissed where her nails dug into his skin. "So sorry… I'm so sorry… Sorry…" She kept muttering apologies until she realized what she was doing and pulled away completely, yelping one last "Sorry!" before hanging her head.

Rue reluctantly looked down at her hand that had been on the back of Marshall's neck, and her still watery eyes shot open. Her fingertips had just a bit of crimson on them, but she immediately started to panic. "Y-you're bleeding?!" Without hesitation, she pulled him upright and untied the cloth from around her face and pressed it onto his neck. She glanced over at Fionna, Cake, and Prince Gumball, laughing extremely uncomfortably as if they had just been caught for murder. It was a similar case, but still… "Ehehe…Sorry…"

Cake was the most bewildered of the three as they watched the whole escapade. This girl… really was nothing like she had originally judged her to be. Sure she was explosive, deadly, dangerous, and downright terrifying at times, but deep down she seemed to have a heart of gold… just like Marshall. While Gumball started to twist, and Fionna's eyes started to darken in anger, Cake found that for the first time, as she looked at Rue, she was smiling.

She what!? Fionna fumed, as she watched. Who did she think she was, coming onto Marshall like that? And then she was KISSING him… sure it was just his wrists but still… Fionna felt like grabbing something and throwing it at the back of said hybrid's head. Alas, she was also standing next to Gumball, so doing absolutely anything of the sort was completely out of the question.

Marshall didn't react at first as Rue spoke, still bracing himself as if he truly wanted her to kill him. As she spoke though, he seemed to be wincing ever more and more deeply. As she spoke about the guards, he physically cringed. He could still see it clearly, the blood of the King of Nightmares flowing through his veins. It was almost as if, when he put on the medallion, he hadn't just have a change in emotions… an entirely different being had taken over, one he thought he had slain.

As the words, "I love you," came out of her lips, Marshall wanted nothing more than to push himself up off the ground; to get out of there, as he sure as heck should have done before putting the stupid medallion on his face. They hadn't even COMPLETED the game. He had put it on because of a stupid bet, terrified all of the Candy Kingdom, and killed Rue all for a stupid bet that they hadn't even finished.

As soon as Rue let him up, he took the bandage that she had wrapped around his neck, placed it back in her hand, and then took off into the sky. In the blink of an eye, he was gone, leaving Rue, Cake, Fionna, and Gumball to stare after him, utterly and completely confused. Fionna was the first one to break the silence with the words, "What… just happened?"

Rue was a little surprised when he placed the cloth back in her palm. All that could leave her lips was a quiet, "Wh… What…?" before he left her, leaving her staring up at the sky with glassy eyes.

Her body crashed onto the ground once again, Rue curling up into a ball and sobbing, the cloth pressed to her face. "Th-they always l-l-leave…" She whispered, her voice extremely shaky.

She pulled away from the cloth for a moment to peer up and see if any civilians were still gaping at her. Nevertheless, they were… Then again, who wouldn't after what had just happened? The demoness lunged forward just a little bit and hissed, "What the heck are you staring at me for?!" just to try to startle them and hopefully scare them off.

Rue glanced down at the cloth once again. Her eyes widened at a sudden realization, only causing her to burst into tears once again. Usually, creatures with demon blood had red blood, but his was extremely dark; in fact almost black…

Forcing herself to her feet, she sniffed and wiped the tears from her eyes, then gave the same glassy stare to Fionna, Cake, and Gumball, contemplating whether she should take one of them with her to find Marshall. From what she knew, they all seemed mortal and couldn't be brought back… Rue yelped one last "Sorry!" as she tucked the cloth in her pocket and tightened her jacket around her waist, then burst off into the skies after Marshall.

The cold wind whistling in her ears wasn't as comforting as it usually was… Due to the pessimistic thoughts pulling her under and attempting to drown her, it really wasn't such a good idea to be up in the sky… The one thought "You'll never be good enough" was pushing her farther like an undersea current. Her body couldn't take what her mind was doing to her… Rue's wings folded against her body and she fell back into a deep plunge.

As Rue took off, Cake quickly scrambled back onto Lord Monochromicorn and took off into the sky after her. She didn't know what was going on, but was aware of one thing. This wasn't going to be good. Fionna remained behind, standing where the scene had taken place. What was going through her mind was unreadable, and although Cake knew it was her responsibility to watch over Fionna, she'd made a mess as far as Rue was concerned. She owned it to Rue to at least try to clean up as much of it as she could.

Gumball stared up even more distasteful than normal. "I never liked that Marshall much, but would it have hurt the guy to at least SAY something to the poor girl before taking off into the skies?" Then he set his hand on Fionna's shoulder, and gently led her away from the scene and into the castle.

Runnn! Ruuunnn! RUUUUNNNNN! It was the one word rushing through Marshall's head as he took off through the skies. Driven by a force, a power, a memory long forgotten. He'd gone too far, played a little too much, flirted a little too strongly. Flirting was a bad idea when you didn't want a girl's affections. He knew that… but like most of the things in his life, including his medallion, what he knew and what he did were very rarely connected together. He… was not wise.

Where are you going Marshall? The voice in his head. The question. He didn't know… didn't care. He'd up and left the Candy Kingdom and its surrounding areas before, he could do it again. But he hadn't had so much to lose before. There had been no Fionna, no Cake, none of the memories and adventures they had shared. And then there was Rue, fun… interesting… the kind of person he'd wanted to meet all of his life.

He could go back, face the truth… stop running. But running was what we was the best at. It was his greatest skill. Running and forgetting was the only way he'd been able to survive for a thousand years… as everything around him died. To remember… He shuddered, and kept on flying. Rue's body went completely limp as she kept falling through the sky. The horrid thoughts were still being shaken around in her head, the struggle to be rid of them was worsening. The world blurred around her until her back hit the abnormally long, dark rainicorn's body

The sensation was like billions of tiny needles jabbing into her back that had just been roughly massaged with rocks. Tears streamed down her face from the impact. Then it seemed that someone furry was wrapping itself around her… The yellow and white fur pattern was blurry to her, but extremely easily recognized. "…Cake…?" Rue groaned, trying to roll over and position herself properly. "Wh-what's this all… About…? Why did you follow me…?"

After the extremely long rants with Cake, Rue knew well that she was Fionna's guardian, but she had no idea why she would come after her… This was her mess, she wanted to go with Marshall… It was her fault he tried to outdo her, her fault that they had the stupid competition, her fault she admitted she loved him, her fault that he was trying to run away… In all right means, it was her duty to bring him back. She knew Cake could fight, but she could also get hurt a lot more easily than Rue could… She wasn't completely sure if she could handle Marshall alone, though…

"…L-let me go, Cake…" The demoness squirmed awkwardly in Cake's grasp. "I-I have to find Marshall. Let me go!" Her own thoughts had overpowered her and made her weak… That was pathetic… She kept attempting to wriggle away and keep most of the tears from escaping. "Cake! Just let me fall! What am I even worth to anyone?! All I do is scare people off! I can't do anything without hurting someone!" Strength coming back to her, Rue began thrashing and screaming. "Just let me fucking die already! No one needs me!"

Cake's response was not what one would consider all that sympathetic, but then again, it was Cake after all. She leaned forward and slapped the demoness across the face. "Snap out of it, would you? What happened to the Flame Demon who was threatening to rip my face off when we first met? This is not becoming of you, Rue!" Then she sighed and said, "I have known Marshall for a while now, and I can assure you... you have done nothing wrong whatsoever. If anything, you gave him the night of his life."

"Now you listen to me, and you listen good. At the moment, I don't know what is going on with Marshall, but I can assure you he is in his normal, dark, brooding, not-killing-people personality. As such, he isn't a danger to anyone... besides possibly himself. I didn't come to stop you. I am going to help you catch him. As is my darling here." She patted the Monochromicorn on the head.

She stared out into the darkness and urged the Rainacorn onwards.

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Marshall simply couldn't shake the feeling that he was making a mistake, that he really shouldn't be running. But there were a number of reasons for it, a number of reasons he had to get away, the same reason he moved every ten years or so. There were things about him that nobody could ever possibly know.

As much as he wanted to stay, as much as he wanted to get to know the somewhat crazy Rue better, he knew that this was just another thing he needed to bury deep inside, another moment he had to forget... not just for his sake, but for the sake of everybody in Ooh that he now cared about.

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Rue cringed as Cake whacked her across the face, leaving a red mark for a good few moments. It stung, making it feel like heck, but Rue felt better, having used pain to solve her problems many, many times… Her attempts on trying to escape stopped as well.

Her eyes gradually went from watery to glassy as Cake kept ranting to her. She didn't feel like she was that good to Marshall… She didn't feel like she was that good to Cake, either… Finding someone who could understand her like he did was extremely hard, especially since it seemed like they'd been through so much in so little time…

Rue turned her head away to avoid Cake's gaze, the cool air starting to freeze the wetness on her cheeks. She had stopped crying but things still felt like she was trying to gather up the pieces of glass that had shattered suddenly, and her hands had already been stabbed too many times.

For a second, Rue thought she saw another figure flying up in the distance. To try to get a better view, she tossed her head back and squinted. Surely enough, it was Marshall. Rue sunk her fangs into Cake's flesh just enough to get her to release her, then bolted towards Marshall.

"Marshall?!" She called out, flying towards him as fast as her wings could manage. "Marshall, are you okay? Marshall!" He could outfly her easily, but she desperately hoped he was already worn out from coming so far… Rue flew upwards and took a dive towards him to gain speed, just barely catching up with him before falling back. "P-please don't leave me…"

Cake winced as Rue bit into her before taking off and yelled after her, "SERIOUSLY!? I would have let go if you simply told me what was going on!" Then she nodded to Lord Monochromicorn, and the two of them dropped back. However. they stayed nearby in case they needed to catch another falling Rue.

No. Marshall looked back as Rue approached him. Go back. Go away. Let me run. I have to run. Running is all there is. He stared at her with a blank expression on his face. His eyes were glassy and shot, as though he didn't even really see her.

As she finished speaking he blinked, and his eyes started to clear. "Rue?" He blinked as he said the words, recognition flashing across his face "No! What are you doing here. Why did you follow me? Are you an idiot or something?" He glanced around, a look of almost terror in his eyes. "You can't be here! It's not safe. I don't care how immortal you think you are. You have to go back immediately. You HAVE to let me leave."

He couldn't face what was on his mind, couldn't handle the truths he had to face. "I am not safe to be around. You have no idea what's going to happen. What in the world I am and have been involved in, what nightmares I have to deal with in the shadows. YOU-CANNOT-BE-HERE! Please, Rue. You have to go back."

Netanya. The name popped into his head for the first time in 300 years, and came so suddenly that he lost his position and fell straight down. He crashed into the ground below, where he promptly curled into a ball and proceeded to shudder, looking for all eyes like a haunted animal who had just realized… He was caught.

"It's because I can't leave you! Not now!" Rue called out to Marshall, "You-… I mean- I just can't! Y-you're in trouble from yourself! Do you have any idea what you're doing to yourself?!"

Rue needed to scream at him, but at the same time, she needed to scream at herself. He wasn't purposely trying to get himself killed by the demons inside… He just didn't know what was going on… After years of experiencing the voices and being overcome by her demon side, Rue knew almost exactly what he felt…

The second Marshall started hurtling towards the earth, Rue snapped out of everything. Pulling her wings against her body, she dove for him with her arms outstretched. He was heavier than her, he fell a lot more rapidly than she could manage…

His body crashed against the earth but Rue managed to land on her feet before she could crash as well. "Oh… Uh… I-I…" Rue gazed down at him with watery eyes, unsure whether to run or stay…

Rue looked at him and saw herself… When things similar to this happened to her, she just wanted to curl up into a ball and sob, so she knew he needed comfort. Slowly, she laid down beside him to try to comfort him. "I'm staying. I don't care." She tried to state it firmly, but her voice was already raspy from crying. Looking down at her hands, Rue interlocked her fingers and twiddled her thumbs slowly, a little uneasy with what was going on.

"…When Rome's in ruins, we are the lions, free from the coliseums…" She sang quietly to him, moving her gaze back up to his eyes, "In poison places, we are antivenom… We're the beginning of the end…"

Marshall looked at Rue with a more normal look, at least for him, on his face. "You forget that I am nearly a thousand years old. Of course I know what I'm doing. You are the one who has no idea what you are getting yourself involved in."

"You see, Rue unlike you my body was not originally designed to live forever. The only reason I am still alive is because of the vampire blood inside of me."

In truth, he remembered very little of those years, had trained himself to forget. Instead, he remembered them as one would a movie or television show they had watched. The person that said events had happened to was not him.

He sighed and looked at Rue.

"You think you had a lot of trouble and heartache in your life but I have had a thousand years of nightmares. The only reason I am still alive is because I have learned to be a master of running away, of forgetting and moving on.

"As a result, despite the fact that I have lived over a thousand years, I have not truly lived very long at all. Every time I have moved on, sealing my past away in a sealed vault. I live countless short little lives, as the years go by, and I constantly die, because I know this much. To remember is to die for good."

"I never know when the time will be that I have to leave, but I know that when the call comes, I have to answer it, for both my sake and those around me. Otherwise Netanya…" The word came unbidden to his lips.

Marshall's skin instantly paled, which was saying something because as a vampire it was already very white. His eyes seemed somewhat glazed over again as he rolled himself once more into a ball. "Please Rue… Go away and let me rot."

Rue lowered her head and pulled herself to her knees. She didn't really know how to react to this, mostly because what he said just barely made sense to her… But that name made no sense to her. Netanya… It didn't sound the least bit familiar. Who was she? Was she out to get Marshall? What was she even trying to do to him?

"…I-…" Rue tried to pull Marshall upright but her arms were weak and he was too heavy for her to lift. So, she threw her arms around him and buried her face in his side. Tears began to soak the fabric of his shirt as she held him as tightly as she possibly could. Since she knew he was leaving her, most likely forever, it just made her never want to leave. The words felt like rocks of salt lodged in her throat, making it dry and hard for her to breathe.

Rue gathered up the strength to slowly pull herself away from Marshall, moving her hand from his side up to his cheek. "…W-will you remember me…?" She choked, wiping some of her tears onto her sleeve. "…Will I ever be able to see you again…? Please tell me…"

She wanted to scream for Cake to come and take her. Hopefully she could find them, both pathetically curled up onto themselves. Rue would never be able to live with herself if she let Marshall die…

It took a lot of her strength to meet his pained eyes with her own. It took so long…. So long just to find someone like him… And she was already losing him… Rue tipped her head to the side and leaned in so that her breath was able to be felt on his skin. "Please remember me…" She whispered, then gently pressed a wet kiss to Marshall's lips.


	6. Chapter 6: Coming Back

**Chapter #6: Coming Back**

The reaction was instant, almost the same as if a sleepwalker had just jolted awake. Marshall pushed Rue away and stood up. However, unlike what would be expected, there was no anger or irritation in his eyes. Instead, he looked absolutely and completely bewildered. He glanced around, almost as if awakening from some sort of sleepwalking escapade, trying to figure out how in Glob's name… he had ended up here.

His eyes surveyed his surroundings, passing right past Rue, and fell on Cake and Lord Monochromicorn. "What's going on? Where am I? Why am I here?" Then his eyes widened, and he looked at the two of them again. He muttered under his breath something that seemed like "Wait a second." Then he looked up at Cake. "Where's Fionna?"

Cake and Lord Monochromicorn gave him the blankest looks ever recorded in the history of blank looks. Marshall flipped upside-down and floated over to Cake. "What? Cat got your tongue? Or… would it be a human that's got your tongue?" He swept his hand at her open mouth with a growl as Cake jumped backwards in surprise.

Chuckling, he landed next to the two of them. "I take it, since you aren't yelling at me at the moment, Fionna is cool wherever she is?" Cake nodded her head awkwardly, and Marshall leaned back against the rainicorn. "Cool. That's totally cool." Then he jolted up again as if remembering something. "Ok. So… why ARE we here anyways?" In response, Cake merely pointed at Rue.

Marshall tilted his head and looked down at the girl standing on the ground, looking seriously hurt. Then he glanced around; his mind racing. What the heck is going on here? Shrugging, he glanced back at Cake and Lord Monochromicorn before floating down to the girl. He bit his lip as he looked her up and down.

Being kicked off of Marshall caused Rue to let out a loud yelp. Her face was planted right into the dirt. Great… Just great… Brushing the dirt off of her clothing, Rue pulled herself to her feet once again, a little surprised he would just forget about her presence like that… Especially after she had kissed him… But seriously, what the heck had just happened? His crashing, his muttering, him telling her to leave… What the hell was up with that? Was it the Netanya girl or something?

Rue groaned and turned on her heel to face the tree, then hit her forehead against the trunk. "You… You don't remember me, do you…?" She muttered, digging her nails into the bark. Her tears were still soaked into her skin. Rue's knees weakened as she kept banging her head against the tree, causing her to fall to her knees, then curl up into a ball and rock back and forth slowly. "…Y-you don't remember me… Everything that just happened was a dream, wasn't it…? Just-…" Rue paused to hold out her hand to Marshall and gesture for him to go away. "…Leave me…"

Her eyes were already drained from their tears so all that was left to do was lay on the ground shaking. The night was abnormally cold for late summer… Then again, they just passed some giant blue ice land… Rue wrapped her wings around herself to try to warm herself up a little. She opened her wings just a little to peek up and see if they'd just abandon her like she asked.

Marshall suddenly snapped his fingers as if remembering something. "Rue - Demon girl from Hell - of course. I think I knew your father once." He stopped and continued to ponder. He felt like there was something crucially important that he was forgetting.

"Hey," Marshall said with worry as he reached out and wiped Rue's eyes with his sleeve. "Don't cry…" But as she kept talking he began to feel really uneasy. It had happened again… Hadn't it? Something awoke the complicated issues he buried inside and he'd gone through some sort of mental breakdown. He must have been doing something with her before the whole mess…

He found himself wanting to reach out to her, but also found himself holding himself back. He needed to remember…. Groaning, he clenched his teeth and held his hand to his head. "Bet… Bet… We had a…" His eyes shot open as the events leading up to their arrival in the Candy Kingdom raced through his head.

"Leave you? How could I possibly leave you?" He said as he leaned down and took Rue into his arms. "I only just met you, and have no idea when the next time I have to catch you will be. If I'm not there, who is going to catch you the next time you throw yourself at the ground?"

He reached out his sleeve and wiped Rue's eyes gently, "Don't cry for me… Or for yourself. I can't begin to imagine what happened, why I'm here, or who won our bet. I can say, however, that I'd like to spend as much time with you as I can. Just know… Complicated things happen around me, and certain things need to be avoided at all costs."

He turned her so that he could look into her eyes with a smile, "But if you are willing, we can be friends for as long as time allows."

Wait… He might've known her father at one point?! How?! Rue pulled her wings away from her face and gawked at Marshall strangely. This… This could actually be something that could get her to finally meet him…

The taking her into his arms thing was pretty unexpected. But, Rue threw her arms around him anyways. Her face was pressed into his chest, relieved. He remembered her… Thank God…

But… Did he remember her kissing him? Or was that just some awkward in between stage of his transformation of forgetting things? Rue met his eyes once again, her gaze pained. She slowly leaned upwards and stammered a thank you before pecking his cheek lightly.

"…Please don't leave me then… Never leave…" She mumbled and buried her face once again. "…Please…" Her words were muffled into the fabric of his shirt but he could probably feel the vibrations of her voice on his body.

Maybe she should bring up the topic of her dad… Maybe she shouldn't… The situation was already awkward enough… Maybe she'll ask later… Cake could be listening in on her anyways…

Marshall had said he didn't remember the competition that well, so Rue thought she could take advantage of that, but she felt she should be nice to him after what had happened. So, she awkwardly pulled her face away from his chest and mumbled, "You… You won the competition… By a landslide…"

But then a realization hit her, causing a devious grin to creep across her lips as she continued, "…but you promised not to hurt a soul… So I won…" Tipping her head to the side, she chuckled quietly, contemplating what to make Marshall do for her.

Her original response kinda left him bewildered. He knew he missed something, but he couldn't seem to figure out why she would be staring at him in such a stunned manner. The look on her face basically said, "You just said one of the most incredibly stunning things I've ever heard."

Marshall looked at the way the young demon was clinging to him, and had a major feeling of awkwardness. There was probably something important that had happened between their arrival in the Candy Kingdom and waking up out here. But digging into the past was dangerous and foolish… and he'd already done it once in this lifespan. He couldn't risk it again, not when he had no idea what set the whole fiasco off in the first place.

"I can't make a promise like that, and in all likelihood you probably know why," Marshall replied quietly. "In order to live a happy life… To live a fun-filled, adventurous dream… Certain rules must be obeyed. The biggest of those is that I need to run when I need to run."

Hurt someone… Marshall blinked. That didn't happen very often. Was it Fionna? She wasn't here after all… But no, Cake would be far more cross if it had been. Probably just some stupid banana guard then. He shrugged. "So I suppose that means I need to do something incredibly degrading." He said with an awkward chuckle. Though, he had to admit to himself, it couldn't be as awkward as what he figured they had probably just seen. His transition phases were always his most uncool moments.

Rue realized she was acting like a complete moron in front of Marshall. He obviously didn't remember what happened, so why should she even bother with it? Her grip loosened, causing her arms to fall to her sides. She put her hands on the tree for support and pulled herself upright, then brushed her hands off on her pants.

Glancing over at Cake, she muttered, "…Yeah… I'll tell you what you have to do later…", then joined in on the uncomfortable chuckling. Rue gripped her wrist and dug her nails into it. Now she was probably just going to be socially awkward…

There was a short silence before Rue blurted out, "Race you back to the Candy Kingdom?" It was then that the realization that they had no idea where the hell they were hit her. Naturally, she slapped her palm onto her forehead. "…Where are we…?"

Rue tightened the jacket around her waist, then gestured for Marshall, Cake, and Lord Monochromicorn to follow her up into the skies. With just a few flaps of her wings, she was high up. She flashed a grin down at them and continued to go higher until she could get a good view of the area.

They had flew an awful long distance… Just at the horizon, the kingdom was barely visible. Rue extended her arm and pointed in the general direction of it. "It's that way!" She called out before taking a plunge towards it, then flying back up again.

Marshall blinked as she suddenly released him and whispered nearly inaudibly, "I'm sorry." And he truly was. Sometimes it was a pain to not remember, but having lived such a long life he knew one thing for certain. There were a lot more sucky things about eternal life than positives. Like the fact that even if he never left the Candy Kingdom, pretty much everybody he cared about would be dead in less than a measly 100 years. This way was the only way he could make it - A million short lives instead of one long agony filled one… where everybody died.

Marshall looked up at Cake and nodded his head. Yeah. Didn't want the furball involved, after all. If there were two people in the world he didn't want to make a fool of himself in front of, it was Fionna and Cake.

The idea of a race sounded fun, though Marshall couldn't help but wonder if she was doing it just so that she didn't have to be standing next to him. "Great," he muttered to himself. "You finally find somebody to do awesomeness with and you blow it for some reason that you can't even remember!"

As Marshall battled with his inner thoughts, Cake floated down to Rue on Monochromicorn. "Rue, I need to go talk to Fionna about all the crazies going on before she sees Marshall again. So whatever the two of you decide to do…" She shot a smile Rue's way. "Just keep him out of the Candy Kingdom, alright?" Then she turned, muttered something to Monochromicorn, and took off towards the castle.

Her eyebrows scrunched together once more as Cake left. Something seemed suspicious… Rue shrugged, then called down to Marshall with a smirk. "Hey pretty boy! You coming up here or do you need me to carry you?"

Her arms outstretched so that her body made a T shape and she fell backwards, flipping in the air so that she was right side up. With grace, she swooped down and scooped up Marshall in her arms, then retreated back to the sky.


	7. Chapter 7: What's Next?

**Chapter #7: "What's Next?"**

"Now, where's that cemetery you mentioned?" She released him into the air and flipped herself upside down. Her hair looked incredibly stupid along with her goofy grin. "You too scared to go there?"

It felt kind of weird being able to bounce back to her normal state so quickly… In her mind, questions where racing through her head. Most of them she probably wouldn't get an answer to, though… That, she wasn't okay with.

"…Hey, do you know if that party's still going on…?" She asked, flipping herself upright and smoothing her messy hair. "No medallion though… Please don't use the medallion…"

The medallion… Marshall's eyes widened as he thought about it. He knew the small object so well that he didn't even need to see it to picture it absolutely perfectly. So, whatever had happened was related to that. No wonder he had snapped. He shuddered and pushed the thoughts away. Best not to dwell on the what ifs.

As he glanced at Cake's r etreating figure, he smirked and turned his attention back to Rue. "I picked the last adventure," he said with a grin, "and by the rules of Marshall bets, you are going to have to decide what we are going to do next."

As he stared into Rue's eyes, flipping upside down in order to view her differently, with a smirk… He found himself wishing these days could last forever. The almost loss of these moments had forced him to start thinking about how short-lived they were going to be, and he really didn't want to waste a minute of them. After all, this version of him ought to have as good a life as possible before it vanished.

"I want you to know something," Marshall said as he reached out and took Rue's hand between both of his own. "No matter what happens in the next day, week, month, year, lifetime… I am glad I got the chance to meet you today."

"Awwww…" Rue tipped her head to the side, smiling sweetly at Marshall, "So you're going to be all sweet with me, hmm~?… Well I love you, too." She pulled herself closer to Marshall and made it feel as if she were about to kiss him. "…But it does feel like we've known each other for a lot longer…" With one light movement, she quickly booped her nose with his, then released his hands from hers and folded her wings against her body.

Chuckling, she fell backwards and quickly caught herself in the middle of it, then flew back up and tugged on the leg of Marshall's pants, trying to get him upright. "Okay… So we've had enough scaring others for the night…" Rue tapped her chin, "…Can we go back to your place for some food, then hit the cemetery?"

Because she hadn't eaten in around 12 hours, she was famished. However, it was a routine of hers to go for long periods of time without anything to eat or drink… Mostly because she forced herself not to, though…

"Whaddaya say, pretty boy?" Noticing he was enjoying his state of being upside down, she joined him once more and nudged him. "I'm so hungry… You can cook, right…?" The demoness whined, "Please tell me you can cook, Marshaaaaaallll…"

Marshall blinked, looking completely lost again. Not exactly how she had been responding the last few times he'd said things like that. Man… Having a friendship with somebody was hard when you were unable to remember critical moments within it. He nodded his head at her comment as he continued to dwell on the whole medallion thing. Scaring probably wasn't a good idea if he had just done something whack with the medallion that day.

He couldn't really figure out why they would be going to the cemetery if they were not planning on scaring anyone, but didn't really feel like voicing his confusion at the moment, as he was already seriously lost. Plus, that might be a good place to take whatever punishment was awaiting him.

"Cook?" He blinked at the taunt and thought about it for a couple of seconds. "I have cooked before, but not since…" He stopped instantly. NO! He couldn't try and think back like that. Whatever that memory was, it was sealed with a door that must not be opened - one that had a black symbol on it. Was of the memories he must NEVER remember.

Instead, he replied, "I'm a vampire, Rue. I don't eat like you. I drink the color red. There hasn't even been any food at my house for hundreds of years."

"Wait a second… How the heck do you drink the color red?" She knit her eyebrows, clutching the red fabric she was wearing. "…I have vampirific fangs…" Slowly, she lifted her shirt to her mouth and sunk her fangs into it, then immediately spit it out. "It tastes like cotton! How do you DRINK a color?! How do the laws of physics even emit that?!" Disgusted, Rue pulled a long thread from her mouth. "…This is your fault…" She muttered and threw it down.

"But what can I eeeeaaaaaattt?" Rue resumed with her whining, swatting at Marshall's arm. "I'm so hungryyyyyy! And I can't eat your foooooood! And… And I feel so weak…" She joked just to try to capture Marshall's full attention. She made her body go limp and she fell a good 20 feet below the surface of the clouds, then reemerged.

"Can we please get some food before something like that happens for real? Because if it does, I'm not coming back up…" The demoness crossed her arms over her chest. "Maaaarrshaaaallll… Feeeeed meeeeee…"

She intended her whining to make her sound like a little kid. Plus, if she didn't get her way, she would throw a tantrum until she found something somewhat amusing.

Marshall looked at her with a smirk. "You do it the same way you would typically drink blood. You just stick your teeth in and drain. I wouldn't expect a non vampire to even understand." He chuckled. He glanced around and frowned. "Now that I think about it, there isn't anything red anywhere around here." He pondered for a second before saying. "I know! Let's head over to the Candy Kingdom. I'm sure there is a lot to eat there… And NO I do not mean the peasants." He chuckled.

More than that, though, he felt something had happened to Fionna that nobody was telling him, as he was going to be seriously nervous about her until he saw with his own eyes that she was ok. Surveying the surroundings, he nodded his head and started flying back towards the Candy Kingdom, glancing behind him to ensure that Rue was following.

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A blinking light, red. Craziness. A gloved hand reaches out and touches it. "Could it be? This is too early! Unexpected. Which means… Something unexpected may be happening." A grin. Sharp, carnivorous teeth. Eyes sparkling, red as flames barely visible in the dark. "I must investigate. This time, Demon King of Nightmares, you won't escape from me."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Baring her fangs, Rue hissed at Marshall, then growled, "You really do not understand that I do tend to drink blood from time to time… I've stopped with a lot of it, though…" She left out the part about how many thousands of people she'd already killed by drinking blood… At least she was over it, but the thought still made her shudder.

"Wait nonononono!" Rue dove down and grasped Marshall's wrists from behind him. "Cake said for me to keep you away from the Candy Kingdom!" It probably had to do with the torturous things they had just done to the citizens… "I-I can't let you go back there, who knows what could happen!"

"Okay… Is there anywhere else we could go?" Rue pulled out the scarlet cloth from her pocket, the one some of Marshall's blood had gotten on, and handed it over to him. "This should tie you over, I guess… I can dye it again anyways…"

Rue narrowed her eyes at Marshall. Something was wrong… She could sense it… "…Do… Do you… Feel like we're being watched…?"

Marshall raised his eyebrows as he looked at Rue. "Drinking blood is really disgusting. Tried it once, nearly threw up, never tried it again… even during my totally crazy years." He didn't elaborate any deeper, though whether it was because he didn't want to, or because he couldn't remember anymore, remained unclear. "So I just drink the color red instead."

Then he blinked and stopped, his face contorting nervously. Cake didn't want him in the Candy Kingdom? Seriously? Had whatever he had done been that bad… or was Fionna actually seriously hurt after all? His heart started to pound as he considered whether or not he should make a bolt for the Candy Kingdom anyways.

He was, however, distracted by Rue's question. Anybody around? He glanced around at the empty fields in all directions. Sure it was dark, but he could actually see better in a dark area than he could in a light one. "There is absolutely nobody anywhere. I guarantee you, not even a butterfly could possibly be watching us right now."

"Oh… Kaaaayyyy…" Rue muttered something under her breath, then fell back just to amuse herself. "Can we find out what we're going to do now? Because I can't decide!" She began humming a song as she circled around Marshall, gradually growing from singing softly to making her voice loud enough to be heard properly. She sang as if she were one of those princesses little children were always told about…

As she progressed with the melodic song, the key changed. The song became a minor key, and the lyrics became darker. All of a sudden, there was a pause. Rue broke the silence with a loud growl and a scream. Not like screaming as in a little kid trying to sing loudly, screaming as in the kind of music that is associated with the devil. Her body fell again, cutting through the still air and making a whoosh that was easily hidden under the sound of Rue's cackles.

Marshall quite enjoyed Rue's singing. He found it helped to relax him as he stared out at the distant Candy Kingdom. There, Cake was speaking with Fionna, who was hopefully ok. He both hated and liked that nobody had really told him what had happened... but it left him seriously concerned about Fionna's health. If only she had been there too, he wouldn't have to worry now. Listening to Rue, however, he could feel himself calming down.

Then... it changed, as drastically as a forest's music changed when a fire suddenly appeared. Marshall grimaced and turned to look at Rue with unease. What the heck was she even up to? And then she was falling... again... just as he had predicted before. And although he knew she was immortal, and thus it couldn't really kill her... He paused for a second. How the heck did he... NO TIME! He shoved the question from his head and dove down in a swoop to catch Rue once more in his arms before she hit the ground.

Rue half expected Marshall to come to the rescue and half expected him to know that she was just joking around and could save herself. However, when he caught her, she chimed jokingly, "My hero… I suppose you expect a reward for your noble deed of saving me?"

She swooned in Marshall's arms, "Oh my beautiful Vampire King! How could I ever repay you for saving me from the clutches of… Myself?" Flinging her arms around Marshall's neck dramatically, she gasped up at the sky. "Oh my king! It's almost midnight! Quickly! Kiss me before my magical magic wears out!" Rue resumed to giggling madly about her stupid phrases. She paused to gaze back into his eyes; first as a joke, but then found herself completely mesmerized. Her brain was telling her to pull away due to the embarrassment this might 'cause her, but her heart wanted her to stay lost.

Marshall relaxed immediately after catching her, as her reply made it clear she wasn't in whatever crazy mood she had been in the last time she did this. Though, it did beg the uncomfortable question of what would have happened to her had he not moved quite fast enough. He smirked wickedly at being called a hero, and his look itself made it clear that wasn't a very accurate description.

"Kiss you?"Marshall thought, his eyebrows rising at the statement, as he chuckling wondered what exactly would happen if he DID indeed kiss her. No! Bad idea - that was taking flirting, and even joking, just a little bit too far. As she looked into his eyes, he found himself swallowing. What the heck was going on with him right now? He barely knew this girl... knew her less even than she knew him. Gah! He forced his eyes to look away from hers. Though he attempted to do it in a "cool" manner, he wasn't at all sure how successful he had been.

Rue's face flushed as he tore his gaze away from her as she did the same. Her awkward chuckles filled the silence; she was still unsure of whether to slip out of his arms or remain there. Marshall was oddly comforting, but she had a feeling something was wrong now…

Her hunger pains subsided [and highly likely to return later], she took off to the skies once again, pulling him up with her. Rue resumed singing the first part of the song in its happy major key, and no, not like an actual spawn of Satan. She grabbed one of Marshall's hands and made him spin around before letting go.

She was still unsure what they should do… They had around five hours until the sun rose, and Rue would have to go back to Fionna's place, extremely exhausted. Rue stopped singing to ask Marshall, "Hey, can you just choose what to do next? We've wasted enough time with… Nothing, actually… What do you want to do?"

Floating, flying, spinning... Marshall took it all in one flow, only afterwards pausing to realize that he kinda missed holding the girl in his arms. Well, chance was gone. Drat. He shrugged his shoulders and relaxed again as he listened to Rue sing. She was really good. His eyes widened at this realization, and another thought quickly entered his head.

"We could head over to my place," he suggested with a smile. "I can't help but admire your lovely voice." He winked. "I myself happen to be a musician. So if you come to my house, I can pull out a couple of my choice pieces and we can put together some form of music." He'd done it plenty of times with Fionna, who played the keyboard.

He nodded his head with a smile, and started flying in the direction of his cave, which happened to be just on the other side of... Shoot. He frowned as he looked at the mountain in front of him. If there was one thing he didn't want to do, it was mess with the Ice Queen. Though, with any luck, the Ice Queen would be very, very asleep already,

4


	8. Chapter 8: The Ice Kingdom

I wanted to start by thanking jennyxxfasho and CuteFoxSage-NightShadeOwl for your reviews. They meant a lot to me. ^_^

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**Chapter #8: The Ice Kingdom**

Rue stopped mid-song and flew over to Marshall. "Sounds like a good plan! And maybe you could teach me how to drink the color red!" Chuckling, she fell back in the air again to the ground. Right before she hit it, she flipped herself around, scooped up a bit of the snow, and retreated back to the skies. She firmly packed it into a good sized ball, then chucked it at Marshall's back.

Wait a second… The land in front of them seemed like the place that weird lady in the giant penguin machine that she had "saved" Fionna from… That lady seemed like she would live here… All alone and slowly going insane… Rue shook her head and tried not to think about it. It's not like someone would be so as crazy to attack people twice in less than 24 hours… The old hag had to give people a break…

Suddenly a window opened in the left eye of the face on the mountain. Then came the Ice Queen's voice, "HEY! WHO'S TOUCHING MY SNOW?!"

Teach how to drink the color red… No, that was something Marshall couldn't do. He'd made a promise, after all. The oath, "Vampires only, fool." Couldn't really remember who he had made the oath to, sealed behind yet another black door. He just knew it was something he could not do. As much as she may have been a blood drinker, that alone did not make her a vampire.

Due to the fact that he knew you were never supposed to touch the snow on Ice Mountain, Marshall was totally unprepared to be smacked in the back. As a result, it sent him spiraling downwards, though it took a mere flip to right himself.

Ice Queen… Marshall thought as he heard her voice. Depending on her current mood at the moment, this could be really weird, really boring, really rough, or… Nah, those were really the only options. He shot a grin over in Rue's direction, wondering how she would respond to all of this.

The Ice Queen squinted, peering around for any sign of motion. Grumbling something, she turned away from the window for a moment and called out to one of her penguins. "GUNTER?!" Her voice was just loud enough to make the mountain tremble.

Rue swooped down and clung onto Marshall from behind. "Should we hide?" She hissed, glancing up at the mountain. Before contemplating what Marshall's reaction would be, she confessed, "I-I burned her earlier… She might remember me… Long story…" Cringing, she pressed her face into Marshall's neck. "I don't know!"

"Aha!" The Ice Queen somehow appeared behind them, jabbing her cold, pointed finger into Rue's back. "…Oh Marshy, who's this? C'mooonnn, I thought we had something!" Rue's body couldn't handle the Ice Queen's temperature. As a reflex, she dug her nails into Marshall's chest, trying not to show any sign of weakness to the Ice Queen.

Marshall winced as he heard the loud voice, shaking his head with a slight frown. Hanging around the Ice Queen was something that had always bothered him, namely because he knew she was somehow behind the first black door that he had ever created, somewhere around one thousand years prior.

"Remember?" Marshall chuckled as he turned to address Rue. "Rue, the only person I've ever met who has more memory issues than I have is her. I guarantee you she has no idea what she did just two days ago, and has forgotten almost everything that has happened to her today. Unless you smash her regularly, she'll just write you off as unimportant."

The Ice Queen was flying towards them when Marshall looked back up again. Shoot. Maybe hiding would be a good idea after all. He could already imagine what she would say when she showed up. And… She did.

"As I told you, Ice Queen, you and I are NOT a couple. I have absolutely no idea where you even got that idea from. He winced as Rue's nails dug into his skin. "I do not do romance, ever, with anyone."

Rue's heart sank. So he didn't love her… He probably never would anyways… Pathetic.

"C'mon, Marshall! Don't you remember all the radical stuff we've been through? Hmm? You gotta remember that…" Her blue gown billowing in the cold wind, the Ice Queen flew in front of him and placed her hands on her hips. Glancing at Rue disgustedly, she asked once more, "Now, can you please tell me who this girl clinging to you is?"

She frowned at the Ice Queen but didn't bother answering. Instead, she contemplated whether Marshall would notice if she let go of him and fell again. Or she could just go fly back to Fionna… She couldn't understand Marshall. Was he lying to the Ice Queen or something? It hurt having feelings for him.

The Ice Queen began prodding Rue with her finger again. "Hey! What's wrong? Don't you talk?" Rue swatted at her hand, loosening her grip on Marshall. She could leave any moment. It was just hard to choose if she wanted to or not at the moment…

"Stop it!" Marshall said angrily, slapping The Ice Queen's hand away from Rue with a glare. "I very distinctly remember all the issues you've brought my way," Marshall said with a frown. "You are always causing me trouble in some way, shape, or form." Then he set his hand on Rue's shoulder. "This is Rue, and she happens to be new to the area, so I am showing her around."

He paused for a second, glancing up to the Ice Castle, feeling he would probably regret what he was about to say. "Perhaps you would like to show her around your place? I'd be coming to help, of course." As much as he hated to admit it, there were a ton of awesome things Rue might totally enjoy seeing in the insane woman's house.

Marshall turned to speak to Rue and blinked in surprise, squeezing her arm a little tighter for comfort. "Everything ok, Rue?" He whispered quietly, concerned. "I really DO think there are some awesome things there you might enjoy seeing."

Rue desperately longed to tell Marshall the truth, how she felt, how much she loved him, how much she felt she needed him… All of it stayed lodged in her throat as she lied about being okay, nodding slowly and mumbling, "I'm fine…"

Squinting at Rue once again, the Ice Queen muttered to Marshall, "I don't know… Doesn't she look a little… Oh I don't know… Suspicious to you…?" It was extremely stupid doing that with Rue practically attached to Marshall's body.

"I-I'm sorry…" Rue stammered, releasing Marshall from her embrace. "I-… I don't really want to… I should just… Go…" It was the second time she'd decided to awkwardly leave Marshall like this. Slipping her hands to her sides, she fell and swooped down, retreating back into the forest.

The Ice Queen pursed her lips. "…Well, I guess that just leaves you and me, Marshy… She seemed kind of… Y'know…" She put her hands flat in front of her face and opened them to resemble doors, making a loud cuckoo clock noise.

Marshall glanced at Rue's retreating form, and then back at Ice Queen for a minute. His voice got deadly cold and lost its mocking, impatient, annoyance. He grabbed Ice Queen's shirt and spat, "The only reason I am not breaking your face at this moment is because I have somewhere else that I have to be. I am warning you though. Do that again… and you're dead." Then he threw her backwards, turned, and took off in Rue's direction.

"RUE!" Marshall called, easily catching up to her and grabbing her by the arm, albeit gently. "What the glob, girl? Sure Ice Queen can be a little bit of a pain in the neck, but that doesn't explain you running off crying like that." He winced as he said it though, forcing himself to remember what he had already, by habit, completely forgotten occurred – his memory wipe.

He sighed and released her arm. "Look. I really don't know what happened while we were in the Candy Kingdom, what I did, what I said, what I promised. None of it. And I know that something… must have happened then that is screwing with you now. So, if you really have to leave, I'll understand. Sorry I couldn't show you a better night."

The Ice Queen instantly became furious with Marshall. Just as she was about to unleash some of her wrath onto him with her ice powers, there was a crash back in the castle followed by a pained, "Wenk!" Her angered expression remained as she stormed back into the castle and proceeded to scream at one of the penguins.

Rue wasn't too surprised when Marshall came after her now. It hadn't been an entire night, and she'd already attempted to leave what, three times now? That was a new record… But her emotions were like the tides of the ocean, a little predictable but constantly changing.

Rue didn't known what to think. All that kept happening was one of them flying off and the other trying to get them… It was mostly her, but anyways… Why did it even matter if he loved her or not? Marshall was still an amazing person… But maybe she just wouldn't be able to handle it if she ended up falling for him…

Her arms fell limp to her sides as she shook her head. "…Just… Nevermind… Can… Can we just go back to your place like we planned?…" Her attention was on her feet awkwardly swinging in the air. "…I'm cold…" Rue had her jacket around her waist but couldn't fly with it on due to it not having slits for her wings. She kicked her heels, waiting for an answer.

Cold? Marshall frowned for a moment as he wracked his brains. All he was wearing was his flannel shirt and he didn't figure taking it off would really be all that appropriate at the moment, even if it was to keep her warm. He looked back up at the Ice Queen's castle with a frown. There really wasn't much he could do to… well… Yes. That would work.

He reached forward and pulled Rue close to him, holding her tightly against him. "I can't really give you anything to keep you warm, but hopefully my body is warm enough?" he asked cautiously. As he held her close, her warmth slid its way through to his chest, and he found himself having to look away so that she wouldn't be able to see he was blushing.

He couldn't help but wonder if he was, once again, taking it a little bit too far. It was hard to judge where was, and where wasn't, a good place to hold the line. Romance simply couldn't be allowed in his life. For reasons unknown, even to him, something like that was simply not permitted. It had something to do with the locked doors, just as so many other things that Rue had brought up that day had.

He wasn't used to being forced to think about them quite so often, but Rue… truly wasn't like anybody he'd ever met before. As such, it made sense his mindset was screwed. If things were different, he found himself wondering if he would be falling for her.

A long series of wenks combined with the Ice Queen's screaming came from her mountain. Suddenly, large shards of ice fell out from one of the eyes, landing in the snow below surprisingly almost soundlessly. Rue inhaled sharply as she was pulled up against Marshall. Because she felt too cold to pull away, she wrapped her arms around him in return and buried her face in his chest. The scent of him was comforting… He smelled… Like himself… Just the soap he used combined with his natural scents… Knowing he could pull away any second, she took in the scent of him while she could.

"Th-thank you…" She mumbled into his shirt. Rue was just hungry, tired, and confused. Her wings ached from long hours of flying, and her eyelids were starting to get heavier. It wouldn't be healthy for her to stay awake much longer, especially after all they've done… Lifting her head up ever so slightly, she yawned, "Can… Can you carry me…?"

"That is exactly what I am intending to do," Marshall replied with a smile. He reached out and ran his hand through Rue's hair subconsciously, before realizing what he was doing and instantly stopping. Apparently, she didn't mind being so close to him. If anything, she seemed to be enjoying it. As Marshall looked at her, a part of him wished that life could be different. But there it was. A man who only stayed 10 years in a place before leaving… must not get involved in any sort of binding relationship. His lifestyle came with a heavy cost.

He glanced once more in the direction of the Ice Kingdom, shrugging off what had just happened, before turning back to Rue. "Honestly, I don't know about you… but I am totally exhausted. Let's say I take you back to Fionna's, and we can hang out when I find some more time later."

When Marshall ran his fingers through her hair, Rue giggled like a giddy little teenage girl. Her arms were still freezing, and the hair stood up on the back of her neck, but her face was hot, and her heart felt like it was on fire. Not the bad, burning painful fire… The warm, comforting fire that filled her insides, making her feel warm and tingly.

The second he mentioned dropping her back at Fionna's, she clung to him tighter, her legs wrapping around his. "Noooooooo!" She whined, "I don't want you to leave meeee! It's not like Fionna can keep me warm like this!" Rue snickered, giving him a gentle squeeze. Her eyes met his again and she gazed up at him lovingly. "Can I pleeeeaaaase stay with you? Please?"

Marshall was silent for a moment after hearing Rue's request, genuinely considering the idea. Ok… so he always knew the answer was no. He just couldn't help imagining what it would be like to take Rue home with him for the night. Romance was out though, and love… That was something he had no intention of ever getting himself tangled up in.

"Sorry," he finally said, as he broke the silence. "You really should go back to Fionna and Cake's. I have… things that I am going to have to take care of. And after what happened today…" He winced. "I'm going to need some time to myself for thinking. You and I should totally hang out again sometime." He smiled at the thought. "For now though, it's time to get you home."

"Fiiiiiiine…" She finally responded after a long silence. Rue lingered in his embrace for a few more seconds, trying to scrawl down the feel of him into her mind. However, before she pulled away, she decided it was finally a good time…

"…Thank you… For… Everything…" Her head tipped to the side as she pulled herself up to gaze directly into Marshall's eyes. There was a glint in her own, due to the moonlight that shattered once it hit something reflective. Before he could protest, she moved one hand up to the back of his head and crashed her lips into his. The kiss was pretty quick and gentle, finishing off with her nibbling Marshall's lip.

Knowing that there was an extremely high chance Marshall would either try to fly off as quickly as possible, or be completely repulsed, she let her hands slide to her sides and gravity do the work for her. Her feet slammed against the iced-over snow and she jumped, propelling herself into the skies again. As she continued with her flying routine, she incorporated graceful flips, turns, dives, and twirls into it. The stupid mischievous grin was slapped onto her face once again.

Marshall's reaction was slightly delayed, as there was absolutely nothing in the world he had been prepared for less. In fact, if a green, three-headed alien fell from the sky, it likely wouldn't have been able to surprise him much more than this had.

Then he frowned deeply, wincing as if him somebody had just slapped him across the face. A memory that should have stayed closed attempted to push its way out of one of the black doors, and he found himself realizing what he had been subconsciously perfectly clueless about. This girl seemed to have a thing for him. It was time to go.

Marshall watched Rue flip through the air, and a smile almost crossed his face. She was cute, fun, troubled, a lot like he had once been. Then his frown crossed again as he admitted to himself that such thoughts were not allowed.

"Sorry," he whispered quietly, before taking off in the direction of his home. She could see the Candy Kingdom in the distance, and Fionna and Cake were probably waiting for her there. Plus, it was dangerous for him to be around her anymore. "Goodbye." Then, speeding faster than he had at any other time that day disappeared into the distance.


	9. Chapter 9: The Aftermath

**Chapter #9: The Aftermath**

As soon as Rue was a safe distance away from Marshall, she flew up above the scattered clouds. Her silhouette blocked the moonlight from a certain area, and the stars shone to her, for once, as more than just flecks of white in the sky. She fell back, giggling madly. She had completely forgotten what Marshall was even going through, blindly focusing on how wonderful he was. His messy hair, his snarky grin, the way he held her… It sent shivers down her spine just thinking about it. Rue loved it, she loved him… But she was blinded by it.

As her laughter subsided, she spread her wings and swooped back up. She wasn't sure where Fionna was. She really needed to tell her everything that had just happened to her. The Candy Kingdom had come into view, and Gumball had apparently closed off all the windows to the castle. She dove and skidded to a stop at the gates, then rapped her knuckles against them. "Fionna? Cake? Anyone here?"

The sun was beginning to give the horizon a pinkish tinge. If they didn't come soon, Rue figured she'd just have to fall asleep right there… Then again, Gumball might find her and imprison her for the whole guards thing… Rue yawned, her eyelids extremely heavy, as if someone had crafted them from iron.

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Inside the castle, Fionna and Cake had finished their discussion. As Cake stood up to go find Rue, the cell phone she carried rang. The cat stared down at it in confusion. She carried it around with her by habit, and nothing more. The last time that she had actually been called was a number of years prior. "Excuse me," Cake said with a bewildered smile, "I'll be back in a minute." Then she slipped around the corner.

"FIONNA!" Root Beer Girl called, pounding on the other side of the door. "Rue has returned without Marshall." Instantly, Fionna stood to her feet and rushed down the stairs to where Rue was waiting.

As Fionna looked at Rue, she suddenly found herself completely at a loss as to what to say. Her mind instantly replayed the moment when Rue was kissing Marshall repeatedly. And now she'd been out for a number of hours alone with the guy, so Fionna could only imagine what they might have been doing. If she found out they were kissing or something… She clenched her fists irritatingly.

The look on Rue's face pissed her off even more than before. This was not cool in any way, shape, or form! Then she forced herself to relax as she thought about the events that had happened that morning. If Rue was looking for hope, then she seemed to have found something with Marshall. Plus, she had no reason to believe Marshall had anything for Rue. Above all, she was a hero and couldn't allow herself to be filled with hatred. "Hello, Rue," she said cordially. "Had a good time?"

"It was wonderful!" Rue kept herself from screaming and waking up the entire kingdom, "We couldn't really decide on where to go. Like; first we were going to go to this party, but then we were going to some cemetery, but then he said he'd take me back to his place… Oh, and the Ice Queen stopped us. That was pretty weird…" Rue rambled, tapping a finger to her chin, "But then he-…" Her words quieted, realizing maybe Fionna shouldn't hear that part due to her reaction earlier… Rue cupped her mouth with one hand and whispered, "…I am so sorry…"

It was a little more than obvious that Rue cared a lot about the events that took place in the past few hours… Marshall made her feel like no one else could… She couldn't exactly trust him that much, but he was a lot like her… Rue pressed her chin into her collarbone, mumbling a few more apologies.

His house. Those were the first words that truly registered in Fionna's head. She and Cake were the only people who had ever been to Marshall's house since his arrival in Ooh. That fact alone caused Fionna's blood to boil, though she kept a smile plastered onto her face. Then the girl stopped abruptly, which almost caused Fionna to lose her composure entirely. What exactly had Marshall done? The next words Rue spoke forced Fionna to use all her willpower to not pick up a chair and throw it in the girl's face. WHAT THE HECK WERE YOU AND MARSHALL DOING! She screamed inside of her head, though keeping a smile on the outside.

"Hey, relax." Fionna said, her calmness surprising even her. "Look. Whatever happened, it has been a long day… For all of us. I suggest we head back to my house and get some sleep. Tomorrow is a new day, and I am already going to be sleeping through most of it."

"Yeah…" Rue yawned with both hands over her mouth, "…We should probably… Get some sleep…" Fionna looked a little suspicious… She was smiling too much, and there were slight hints in her tone that made Rue tip her head questioningly. It was hard trying not to smile, and make Fionna even more suspicious of her by her constant grin, so Rue pulled the jacket off her waist and put it on. She zipped it up as high as it could go, flipped up her hood, and buried her face in the collar.

Thoughts of Marshall were buzzing through her head. Rue truly didn't know if she would ever be able to get him out of her mind now… All she knew was she was going to plan to see him later. There was an awkward silence after Rue finished speaking and pulled the jacket's hood over her head. The awkwardness was so thick that one could have cut it with a knife. It was into this atmosphere that Cake strolled distractedly, obviously lost in thought.

Fionna's mood instantly changed as she approached her friend cautiously. "Did… Something happen?" Fionna asked quietly, but Cake just shook her head.

Cake glanced over at Rue and sighed. "It's nothing," she replied quietly. "Just tired from a long day…. and seriously regretting how treated you this morning." She directed the comment at Rue. Then she stretched her legs out the window and grew large enough for the two of them to fit on her back. "Come on, you two. It's going to be morning before we even get home if we don't leave now."

Rue's face lit up when she saw Cake approach them. The whispers between her and Fionna sounded like gibberish to her. It must've been that her tiredness had been affecting her comprehension… Rue hauled herself onto Cake and flopped down, planting her face into Cake's fur. Her body fell limp, and she began sliding off of the colossal cat. Blindly, she patted Cake's back to try to find something to hold onto without hurting her.

Rue's body fell onto the ground and she curled up into her normal fetal position, already asleep. That was a pathetic attempt… Her eyes were already glued shut, and all her limbs felt like lead. So, there was no use in trying that again… Besides, the cold, hard pavement was welcoming for once.

Cake looked down at the young girl sleeping on the ground before transforming her tail into a small bed and scooping her up off the ground. She smiled gently, though she said nothing, proceeding to carry the girl back towards the house. "Peaceful night," she said to Fionna, before realizing that she too had curled up and was falling asleep. "Children will be children," she said quietly to herself.

Then she looked down at Fionna. "Sleep quietly, my love. I swear that I will never let anything hurt you." Then she walked without another word, countless thoughts running through her head. In one night, her life had turned itself upside down. "Everything will be better in the morning," she thought to herself quietly, though she was filled with doubt. "You'll see."

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The next several days rolled by in rapid succession. Nothing strange or out of the ordinary happened, besides Cake's constant stewing and Marshall not showing himself. Rue and Fionna spent it watching cartoons, playing video games, and basically relaxing as children do. Then, at the end of the seventh day… things began to change. At the time, Fionna had just finished kicking Rue's butt in a fighting video game.

"Aww c'mon!" Rue whined, chucking the controller at the floor, "You totally cheated on that one! You have to admit it! I'm the ultimate champion of video games! How could this happen?!" She threw her arms around her knees and rolled onto her back, then rolled so she was sitting upright again.

"Caaaaaaaaaaaakkkeeee?!" She called out childishly, "Fionna's cheating at video games, and she won't admit it to meeeeeee!" The base of her palm hit Fionna's shoulder playfully, knocking her over. It had been a while since Rue had seen Marshall, and she was already extremely worried. It didn't show at the moment, but inside she was shattered. If he liked her back… He would've shown up by now…

Fionna, on the other hand, had pushed pretty much every thought of Marshall out of her head for the time being. She never knew when he would show up anyways. Sometimes, he would appear every day during a week, and others she wouldn't see him for a couple weeks. Once, he'd even been incognito for a month. She leaned back with a smile as Rue taunted her.

Cake didn't come out of the kitchen where she was making breakfast. She'd said little over the last week, and hadn't played video games with anybody. However, she could currently be heard whistling a tune as if she hadn't a care in the world. She called out, "Well, Rue the Champion, you think you could head out to the flower field i showed you yesterday and pick up some of those Driophoniculumpis plants for seasoning? I just used up the last of it. Thanks."

"Whaaaaaat?" Rue yelled back at Cake, "What the heck even is that Dry-phony-cucumber-umpis stuff?! Can't Fionna do it?" The demoness crossed her arms and rolled onto her back again. Groaning, Rue hit the back of her head on the floor and swatted at Fionna. "What's she talking about? What are these flowers? Why do you eat them? Hmm? And what do they look like? Do they taste any good?"

Rue kept throwing, stupid pointless questions at Fionna just to bug her. Apparently, it didn't seem to be working… Rolling onto her side, she propped herself up on one elbow and began jabbing Fionna's thigh with her index finger, her questions getting weirder and more random.

Fionna rolled her eyes and smiled despite herself. However, she did stand up so that Rue would no longer be able to poke her without moving. "Very funny," she said with a sly smile, "but you already know the answer to all of that stuff. Look, if you want, I'll give you a rematch and show you some of my secrets as soon as you return with the Driophoniculumpis plants."

"Yeah," Cake called out in response. "I'd get them myself, but frankly you can move so much faster than me that you'd probably have gotten there, found them, and gotten back before I even reached the clearing. We can eat that supper you have been whining about for hours as soon as you get back."

"Uuuuggghhhh…" Rue groaned, pulling herself to her feet, "Fiiiiine…" She lazily slipped off her jacket and tossed it on the floor, then jumped out the open window with a loud, exaggerated "Wah!" followed by giggling. Rue flipped herself over and planted her feet on the ground before she could be smacked onto it, then jumped and propelled herself upwards into the sky. Once she got high enough to spot the clearing in the forest, she spiraled down towards it.

Unfortunately, she didn't have enough time to stop herself before she fell into a tree, snagging the back of her shirt onto the end of a large branch. Her neck felt like it was going to snap any moment and her limbs flailed helplessly. Struggling to free herself, Rue screamed out for help, startling quite a lot of the forest creatures.

"How totally convenient." A dark, cruel, haunting voice said from below her in the clearing. "I expected to have to fight you while discussing things with you, but as long as you are busy hanging yourself… All you can do is listen." There was the sound of air whizzing by, as a being from below bounded his way effortlessly up the tree from branch to branch to branch. He stopped directly in front of Rue, and looked a lot like some kind of creature directly out of a horror book.

The man was clearly human, albeit a seriously distorted one. His eyes were cold, like a fish, while at the same time wild, like a predator about to feed. His fingers were abnormally long, and the fingernails at the end had turned into claws. His teeth are sharp, like a lion. His hair was wild, tangled, like a rampant bush of briars. His legs were abnormally muscular with added bones that allowed for greater jump ability. Above all, his reflexes were quick as a mouse.

"Rue, daughter of Lirifon, you should have stayed out of Ooh." He said coldly.


	10. Chapter 10: The Hunter

**Chapter #10: The Hunter**

"L-Lirifon?!" Rue choked out. It was then she realized what a complete idiot she had been, and unsheathing her dagger, pressed the button on the hilt, then sliced at the branch. She fell to the ground with a thud, landing in a crouched position. The demoness coughed and pulled herself to her feet.

Once the blade was sheathed and she actually had a hold of herself, she cocked her head and glared at the stranger. "…Hold on… You… You knew my father?!" No one had ever spoken of her father's name to her. She had no clue of his whereabouts, much less anything about him… But this… Thing… Was the first one in over a decade to actually speak of him, giving her a piece of valuable information. Lirifon… That name felt like poison surging through her veins. The taste of betrayal coated her tongue. Her eyes burned with anger. This man was probably the only one who could give such information… Why didn't he tell her earlier?!

"Yes," the beast said coldly, as he stared at Rue with a challenging glare. "I know more about you than even you do, don't I? The only half-human, half-demon ever to come out of Hell. Your mother… Even with all her darkness, learning what it meant to truly live with a demon, in despair clinging to the idea that her daughter might not be… a MONSTER."

The look in his eyes as he said the words was horrifying, even to a person like Rue. Although it was clear he had not come from there, the look in his eyes was shared by only a few beings in existence - pure, undefiled, corrupted evil. Only the very, very top demons in Hell had that look. "A father, choosing to believe all humans weak… Viewing his daughter as little more than a half-breed pest, weak-frail-useless. Voices in your head that transform you into the twisted horror, the very one that… in a fit of pure madness… took her own mother's life."

Rue didn't know it was possible to have her heart shattered so quickly. In the man's presence, somehow everything felt broken… Her heart was telling her to pull out her dagger again and just slit her own throat. But… Her brain was telling her to pull out her dagger and force more information out of this guy.

Both options were not possible due to the numbness slowly spreading throughout her. She knew he would only laugh if she sunk to her knees… She knew she couldn't let him win… It took a lot of her strength to pick up her foot and take a step towards him. Her tongue felt limp as she opened her mouth to say something. Inside her head, she was screaming, "How do you even know this?! Who are you?!" but the words wouldn't come out. Ashamed, she pursed her lips and hung her head, waiting for more verbal punishment.

The man's eyes flashed as he spoke. "I am The Hunter. It is my duty to bring down all monstrosities and set up a world where normal beings can live in peace. My goal is to end all the evils, the monstrosities, the beings that never should have existed in the first place, so that common folk can live their lives without being slaves to said monsters' whims." He flashed a deadly snarl, his sharp teeth and cold, predator eyes appearing to tear into her soul.

"You play at being human, at being humane, but we both know the truth. You are a monster deep down inside, and nothing will ever change that. You lose yourself, fight your nature, but you are not strong enough. Bloodshed and death follow you wherever you go. A monstrosity that even you cannot control. You belong nowhere, shouldn't exist, an abomination to what is right."

Her eyes widened as one word flashed like a warning sign in her brain. Run. He was obviously about to kill her… Of course he'd try to get her in a weakened surprised state before he attempted to slit her throat. That was the best strategy… How did she not see this coming? Luckily she never put her jacket back on, so all she had to do was to get herself back up in the sky and flee. He shouldn't be able to come after her. But if he did… Rue was dead. He would've gotten to her and destroyed what was left of her soul permanently.

Suddenly it occurred to her, he might've gotten to Marshall. He was considered a threat to Ooh at times… Rue pleaded to the Gods that he was safe somewhere else, maybe he should flee too… That thought gave her the strength to pull herself to leave. With a cold glare, combined with a sweet smile, she dissolved in flames, reappearing in the sky about a hundred feet above the treetops. The Ice Kingdom… Marshall was headed in that direction when he said he was going home… Rue bolted in that direction as fast as her wings could possibly carry her.

As Rue took off, The Hunter looked up at her and laughed, a hearty, bone-chilling laugh. "Run! Run like the animal you are! It's no fun for a hunter when his prey just stands there and let's get kill them." His eyes flashed as he said one more statement. "And to answer your unvoiced question, the reason I am here is to kill…" His snarl turned into a purely evil smile, "Marshall Lee."

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"Woah!" A familiar voice called, causing Rue's immediate stop. Marshall Lee floated there, upside-down, looking at Rue with a clueless expression on his face. Then his normal expression of mischief crossed his face. "You seem to be in a rush somewhere, and since it probably isn't to visit with Ice Queen, you must be looking for me."

Then he noticed the expression in her eyes, and his grin failed him. "Look… about what happened last week. As I'm fairly sure you heard me tell Ice Queen, romance is something I can't get involved in. I really didn't mean to hurt you. Or to…" His face puzzled as he attempted to read her expression. "Scare you?" He looked completely lost. "Why would this terrify you? You look like you just saw a ghost!"

Rue threw her arms around Marshall, terrified that these were going to be her last few moments with him. The Hunter was going to get them… She didn't have many places to go in Ooh… Unless… "M-Marshall, we don't have much time," She was shaking in his arms, her voice barely able to be comprehended. Her terrified, watery yet glassy eyes met his. "Run away with me."

It was the stupidest thing she had ever said. However, it just might save his life. He'd spent so long here, she didn't expect him to come with her after just a day of knowing each other, especially on such short notice… But it was her only chance. "P-please, Marshall, I-I-I'm begging you… We have to go, now… W-We, have at maximum, a f-f-few m-minutes before he comes for us… I-I can't leave you here… I can't let him kill you!"

Marshall gave Rue a completely blank look. "If I remember correctly, you are the one who went out of your way last time to ensure that I didn't run away. I'm not going anywhere, Rue. This is my home for the time being, and I have no intention of leaving." Then he frowned and looked in the direction that Rue had just come from. "I'm kinda afraid to ask, but what the heck could possibly have happened over there?" He raised his eyebrows.

"You don't strike me as the kind of person who runs scared, but I'm pretty sure there wasn't any kind of powerful fight. After all, I have been making my way towards Fionna's all day, and can assure you there weren't giant explosions of fire and darkness. Are you seriously running without even judging the power of your opponent?"

Clinging to Marshall tighter, Rue muffled her shaky words by pressing her face into his neck like usual. "Y-you don't understand! H-he froze me! He s-set my insides on fire! O-only-…" Rue's eyes widened abruptly again. "…only my father could do that to me…" She added in a whisper. Thirteen whole years to realize this… It took so long for her to finally realize who that voice in her head was… All because of this sick villain.

Rue didn't tell Marshall that The Hunter knew things about her, things she didn't even know. Now she was broken, internally and externally, nowhere to hide… She was useless. A perfect creature for prey, and the cunning predator was just about to come in for the kill. There was barely anything she could do to prevent their deaths… She was exposed to him, awaiting eternal slumber. "Marshall… We have to go…" Hot tears were transferred from her cheeks to his neck as her nails began digging into his back. "…Now."

Froze her? Marshall looked Rue up and down bewilderingly. Her father? She was absolutely right. He had no idea what in the heck she was talking about, nor did he really care at the moment. He only really cared about one fact. "I am not going to just up and leave Fionna and Cake. They are my family, and my closest friends. I am staying here until my mind tells me it is time to go. The signal is undeniable when it comes, and it isn't here. I-AM-STAYING."

"Whatever monster you saw is nothing that I can't take care of. I didn't reach a thousand years old without having my share of fights. This man is no match for the King of Nightmares." He reached back and removed her hand from his neck, before reaching forward and brushing the tears comfortingly out of her eyes. "You need to calm down." Then he pondered for a second and asked, "This man who you are taking about? Did he really look all that powerful to you? Actually…" He grinned. "I'll just go beat him and show you how badly you are overreacting." With those words, he took off for the clearing he'd seen Rue leave.

Rue couldn't help but smile faintly as Marshall wiped her tears. She nodded, trying to ease her breathing as she peeled herself off of him. Maybe she was just overreacting… It's not like The Hunter could beat her THAT easily… And he probably didn't have a weapon of light so she could bounce back pretty quickly. Rue slowly followed Marshall back into the clearing. She still didn't get those dry-phony-cucumber-umpis flowers… Or whatever they were… If she was outside for too long, Fionna and Cake would come looking for her, and that would be a bad idea.

That guy was still somewhere in the forest. He could strike at any moment and from anywhere. Ripping her dagger from its sheath, Rue instinctively went into a back-to-back position with Marshall. "He could be anywhere… But I got your back…" She whispered, then sang quietly with a light chuckle, "…We go together, or we don't go down at all…"

Marshall smiled as he watched Rue begin to calm back down, although he did notice that her freaking out had apparently caused her to miss what he said about relationships. Oh well. He could deal with that shortly. First, he needed to pound this dude for seriously freaking out his newest friend. The Hunter still stood there, leaning back against a tree. As Marshall saw the strange monster, he felt it. The urge to run. This being was somebody to be avoided at all costs. But… He didn't look THAT strong. Deciding that he would, once again, rather not listen to the urge… Marshall dove down.

As Marshall Lee dove, The Hunter lifted a bouquet of blue flowers with a red center and hurled them upwards. As they made contact with Marshall, his eyes locked up. He fell into a small field of the flowers, where he proceeded to twist and turn in agony. "Thank you, Rue." The Hunter grinned, as he stepped between her and Marshall. "You saved me the trouble of having to go search for Marshall myself."

"Marshall!" Rue fell to her knees and stared at him in horror. Her thoughts were muddled and flooded with panic on what to do. The Hunter could easily kill them both in seconds now… She knew what she had to do. There wasn't much time… Cocking her head to the side, she spun around and unsheathed her flaming dagger, jabbing the button on the hilt. Her eyes were now as black as the voids that destroyed life. The demoness let out a ear piercing cry as she swung at The Hunter madly.

"Let him go!" Rue screeched as she slashed at his clothing, charring the fabric. "What the hell do you want from us, you twisted freak?!" She flipped herself around, landing a kick on his chest and throwing him to the ground. With another swift movement, she sheathed her sword and held up her fist as if she were going to throw a punch.

The Hunter hit the ground and bounded back to his feet with one backwards tilt of his body. Then he dusted himself off and grinned in Rue's direction. "THIS is what I was expecting from you earlier. What kind of monster just runs away scared like a rabbit?" He readied his hands into fists as he began to circle. "As for your friend there, all I did was give him some flowers. Is it my fault he's screwed up his mind so much that they are now going to be destroying him?"

"No…No…" Marshall cried out, barely in a whisper. It was likely that he would have been crying out, but the twisting and flailing was leaving him very little breath to do anything with. "Natanya… Natanya… NATANYA!" Tears filled his eyes as he continued to convulse.

"Leave now, girl. I promise I will let you live, if you choose to leave Ooh immediately. I have no qualms with anybody not on this planet. However, if you do not, I WILL see every little thing you have ever dreamed of… ripped from your fingers. Your choice." He continued to circle, his fists at the ready.


	11. Chapter 11: The Hospital

**Chapter 11: The Hospital**

This could be the choice that would decide both Marshall and her fates. If she left, Marshall would die, but if she stayed, The Hunter would kill her. Rue's eyes darted back and forth between them, finally landing on The Hunter. The hardest decision of her life was also the hardest to force out of her. "I-… I'll go…" Tears started rolling down her face, only making her seem weaker to him. She felt pathetic, vulnerable… Oh how easy it would be to snap her neck right then and there…

"On one condition!" Her voice made her sound a lot more confident than she felt. "…You will swear on your LIFE that Marshall will not be harmed. You'll get him out of this. You'll leave him alone. And I swear… I will never, EVER return…" Rue grabbed the collar of his shirt and snarled, "Promise me."

The Hunter had an utterly blank look on his face for a moment after Rue had spoken, as if what had just come out of her mouth defied interpretation. Then he rolled his eyes as he slapped her hands away. "You don't get it, do you, Girl? I am not after you. I couldn't care less about you. You are of no interest to me whatsoever. I am here, in this spot, for Marshall Lee."

He frowned as he looked at her again. "I have been hunting him down, battling with him, for five hundred years. You cannot even imagine that length of a life yet. I am not giving you the ability to bargain at all. I am giving you the option of living. You are only my concern for as long as you are on Ooh, especially when you are around Marshall. Give it up, girl. Don't throw away your life for the fool. He will never love you. His heart is already eternally bound to somebody else, even if he cannot remember her." He motioned once more to the flailing, gasping figure beside them.

"Natanya… Natanya… Natanya…" Marshall gasped out, barely able to make even a noise now. "Help… me…"

Rue's body felt as if someone had just poured shards of shattered glass onto her. The Hunter's gaze… That burning yet freezing feeling once again… Rue's feet stayed bolted to the ground, unable to move. Her eyes dared to take a peek at her thrashing friend. Marshall… She had no way of helping him. There was no way she could win against The Hunter… Marshall was going to die, and it was her fault…

Suicidal thoughts began to flood her head. She could escape all of this with just a single slit of the throat… She could hide away in Hell until she could muster up the courage to show her face in the real world again… But The Hunter was right: Rue really didn't understand the value of a life, only having been around for 19 years. It took all her willpower and strength to meet The Hunter's piercing gaze again and growl, "Leave him alone."

Her talons dug into her palms testing if they could rip flesh just yet. Maybe she should just take out her rage on him…Actually, that was a perfect idea. A sudden rush of adrenaline came over her, kicking her body into action and in full-on demon mode. She grabbed The Hunter by his wrists and slammed him into the nearest tree, screeching, "LEAVE MARSHALL ALONE!"

The Hunter blinked, held captive by Rue's sudden movement, though his face didn't look at all concerned or scared. In an instant, he twisted his arms free of her grip, flipped over her head, and delivered a barrage of slashes across her back. Then he flipped backwards once more, in order to allow her to turn around. His fists were still raised.

The impact of the slashes caused Rue to bolt around and tackle him. It wasn't easy to ignore the pain while she held him down… She balled her fists up again and landed a blow on The Hunter's jawline. Taking the hit, The Hunter gritted his teeth and rolled over so that he was on top of her, pinning her to the ground. "You cannot defeat me, Little Rue." As he spoke, he slid his claw along her face, leaving a deep, jagged tear from the left top of her forehead to the bottom right of her chin.

Then, abruptly, he stood up and said, "Get Marshall out of those flowers if you want him to live. I'll kill you later." He left her there, with a sliced-up back and blood pouring from the deep wound across her face. The blood flowed over her eyes, so that she could not see. "We will meet again." As he slipped into the shadows, a seriously concerned Cake entered the clearing.

Rue wasn't surprised when he had rolled over and pinned her. Before she could reverse it and pin him again, his talon was leaving a searing pain across her face. As the gash was made, Rue let out a strangled cry. The pain was unbearable… Her body could just barely take it without passing out. It was extremely lucky that he had just run away. The weight was suddenly off of her but, it was still impossible for her to get up. With the rest of her strength, she urged herself to make her way over to Marshall like an inchworm. Before she could pull him out of the flowers, she collapsed for good, her head slamming into the ground.

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When Rue came to, a green-haired man was leaning over her. "I must say," he said as he looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "There was a while there when I really didn't think you were going to make it. If that cut were any deeper, or any further in either direction… there is no way you would have survived. Whoever made the cut must have known EXACTLY what they were doing to both maximize pain, and yet, keep you alive. I am personally quite impressed." He sighed as he brushed his doctor coat off, trying to remove what blood he could from it. Then he pushed his square glasses up with his finger and offered her a mirror.

The demoness' eyes fluttered open. She still felt like most of Hell had been moved to her insides… although, Rue was still sick to her stomach from The Hunter. She felt he had absolutely no reason to harm her the way he did. "I-…" The stunned Rue ran her fingers over her face and grasped the mirror with her other hand. The gash was now a large scar that ran diagonally across her face.

The sight of herself was repulsive. She had gone through getting this… thing… just to save Marshall. She didn't even have any idea if this would fade or not. But Marshall… "E-Excuse me…" She stammered weakly, "But… Where's the boy I was with…? Marshall Lee…?" Honestly, Rue felt like she had the right to know, having just attempted to save his skin…

"Marshall Lee?" Doctor Prince asked as he raised his eyebrows. He motioned to the bed nearest hers. "He's right there." Marshall Lee lay on the bed, beads of sweat pouring down his face, as he flinched slightly in what seemed to be a fitful sleep. "He's been like that since Cake brought the two of you in. Really can't imagine why he had such a negative reaction to the forget-me-not flowers. I have NEVER seen such a response in all my years as a doctor."

Then Doctor Prince paused for a moment and asked, "For curiosity sake, do you think you could tell me what kind of creature you were fighting out there?" He touched his hand gently to the scar and winced at her reaction of pain. "I have almost never seen marks like this. Not since…" He trailed off nervously.

"M-Marshall…" Rue turned her head to gaze at his form. He was just asleep… At least he wasn't dead… Thank the Gods… Relieved, Rue sighed. Turning back to Doctor Prince, she closed her eyes, trying to remember. Her eyebrows knit once she opened them again and responded, "…Well… H-he called himself 'The Hunter'… And… He tried to kill Marshall…"

Her voice quieted, "…and… H-he knew things about me… I-… I never knew…" Rue touched her face again, tracing the scar. Supernaturally, it was beginning to heal normally. If all her previous deep battle scars faded, would this one be any different…? Cringing at the thought of it staying forever, she yanked her hand away.

Doctor Prince froze at the mention of the name and stepped back a couple of feet, glancing around nervously. Then he began to recite what sounded like an epitaph. "Many years ago, when Ooo was new and finding its way to civilization… the dominate race of humans was beginning to divulge into two sets of races.

"One was immortal, powerful beings and the other… ordinary folk. It became clear that the immortal would rule and the weaker be their play things. It was the way of nature. Nobody could stop it. However, one human man saw this inevitable future and took it upon himself to be the hero of the people. He would stand up for them when nobody else would dare. Liberate them from tyranny. He would be their savior."

Rue slid her elbows back and propped herself up so that she could get a better view of Doctor Prince. His story didn't sound the least bit familiar, but she knew it was going to have a dark turn sooner or later… Otherwise, it probably wouldn't have too much to do with their situation right now. She nodded, "Go on…" and pulled herself upright. Deciding it was best to just throw her stupid little blunt questions out there, she asked, "But, what… How will this help me deal with what's going on?"

"This hero, liberator, savior of the world, took on the title The Hunter. And for a time, under his love and care and passion, the world improved. But too much of anything is unhealthy, even heroism." Doctor Prince paused and looked over at Rue quietly for a moment. "The poor man bit off more than he could chew when he attempted to take on a vampire named Danielle. She was known as the most dangerous and deadly criminal alive at the time, and he made up his mind to bring her down. He failed."

"Danielle…" Rue repeated quietly. Where had she heard that name before? Why was it so familiar? She couldn't quite put the tip of her finger on it… Muscles tensing, she attempted to fix her posture, intrigued by Doctor Prince's story. Hopefully she wasn't interrupting with her question… "-But-… How is The Hunter immortal if he's just a human…?"

Doctor Prince frowned as he continued. "The Hunter had sworn to stand up to evil such as her. He couldn't let her reign supreme no matter what. So… in order to defeat her… he chose to become what he hated most. Due to a number of mad science experiments, dark arts, and other, even now unknown, processes he changed his body, his mortality, everything. Needless to say, he went and destroyed Danielle shortly thereafter."

He shivered as he spoke the next part. "But at what cost? He became all-powerful, became immortal, became the sort of person who could force anybody and everybody else to do whatever it was he wanted. He became exactly the sort of being he was hunting down, and he loathed himself for it."

Rue's eyes widened. All the little puzzle pieces were fitting themselves together now… "…So… That's… That's why he wanted Marshall…" Her voice was wispy and weak. "…He's after all the 'bad' immortals…? He's after everyone with any sort of demonic gene…?… But… Doesn't he know that… Marshall's not evil…?" She cringed. What would he do if he found that she was still there after all of this? Surely he'd be able to torture her first like he did with Marshall, only worse… He'd take both of their lives. Split their souls for all she knew… And she'd have no way of coming back.

"That's not the end of the story sadly," Doctor Prince replied uncomfortably. "If you've truly met this 'man', you will have noticed that he is one of the most evil beings in existence… likely even more evil than pretty much any demon that inhabits the most corrupt place in existence, Hell."

"You see… there is not a single person in Ooh, even the ones who suffered the most at Danielle's hands, that thought she deserved the death that she received. The Hunter started by destroying everyone and everything that had ever meant anything to the woman. Then, when she gave in and told him to kill her… he tied her to a bed… and slowly let sunlight come in. First it fried her hands, then her arms, next her feet and her legs, every single part of her that could be burned and yet permit her to live… he did… and only once she was disfigured beyond belief, her world was gone, and she could see nothing but pain… did he permit her to die."

The demoness' cringe worsened as Doctor Prince continued with the story. She glanced over at Marshall worriedly for a moment, knitting her eyebrows. If they were really up against him, they'd never win… If he had the strength to slowly tear away everything from this lady… Gods, he was capable of so much more…

Redirecting her attention back to Doctor Prince, she crossed her arms, her nails digging into her skin. "You didn't answer my question. Why would he be after us? We're not evil." Or at least Marshall wasn't. In other places, Rue was known as a killer. She deserved to die. She wasn't good for anything, anyways. However, she knew immediately that Marshall should live, and she would do anything to assure that.

"The man sees all immortal, powerful beings as pure evil. However, if you truly wish to know, ask him the next time that you encounter him. He may be pure evil, but he isn't a villain. As bizarre as it is to even say, The Hunter is an evil hero. I'm sure he would be more than willing to recount the sins that have put him on Marshall Lee's trail.

"His hatred for himself, his inability to show himself mercy, made giving anyone else mercy ridiculous. He won't stop until there is not a single other being that fits that category out there. Three things I have to point out now though. Firstly, his mind has warped. Where before he chose to be a hero, and do what was necessary because only he dared to… now he tortures and torments… and LOVES it.

"Secondly, there is a spy somewhere. There is no other way he would have known to expect YOU when he arrived here in Ooo. From what you say, he did his research and knows who he is up against. Someone here, somebody who knows YOU are here, must have told him. Thirdly, it's time for you to go. I happen to like being alive, and as long as I am near you… my chances are slim at best. Take him and go, now." He pointed at the unconscious Marshall Lee, hooked up to several different machines.

Rue stared at Doctor Prince with intensity as he finished what he had to say. The Hunter seemed like the kind of guy who loved to play with his victims before he ended them… much like a cat. Rue would have time to interrogate him. "Okay. I-I'll get out of here…" She glanced over at poor Marshall, "Detach him from those machines first though. I don't want to hurt him more." Rue slid her legs out from under the blanket and swung them over to the side of the bed, kicking her heels before planting her feet on the ground.

She hadn't even noticed they had dressed her in a scrub until now… Her clothes were folded neatly at the foot of the bed so she didn't have to awkwardly ask for them. The demoness reached towards them and snatched up the bundle, then slinked over to the bathroom to put them on. The mirror in the bathroom showed that the scar had faded completely.

That was a relief, but it still burned at the touch. At least it was confirmed that all scars faded quickly, excluding the ones caused by pain she had inflicted on herself… Her eyes looked over her nude figure; Perfectly clean of gashes and any signs of fights with others, but neat, horizontal cuts lining her hips, wrists, and thighs. Those thin lines would never fade… It sickened her, yet tempted her to add onto them. To avoid looking at herself again and continue to be disgusted, she pulled on her clothes quickly and exited the bathroom. "So… Should I confront The Hunter or find the spy first?"

By the time Rue had come out of the bathroom, Marshall Lee had been completely unhooked, and yet stayed in a state of what appeared to be sleep coma. Doctor Prince was standing as far away from the two patients as he could, nervously tapping his foot. When Rue asked her question, he looked up at her with a frown. "I am not going to give you any more advice, knowledge, anything. I've probably already said enough to make The Hunter consider me a target. I refuse to say anything more. Just get out, get away from me, and take your doomed friend along with you."

With those words, Doctor Prince turned and exited the room, breathing heavily. He wasn't by any means a The Hunter fanatic or anything. In fact, it was likely pretty much anybody could have told the story that he had just told. It was a horror story that had been passed down for countless generations. Some nations had their boogeyman, their Oogie Boogie, their Slendermen, their ghosts, the kind of stories that were told to little kids to scare them. For the world of Ooo, no monster of the night was scarier than The Hunter. The fact that he had appeared would be like learning that said monsters were truly dangerous.

Frowning, Doctor Prince pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and began to dial into it. As the other end picked up, he whispered, "Prince Gumball, we seem to have an issue. Apparently The Hunter has returned, just as you said he would, and he has made Marshall Lee his next target."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"…But…" Rue put up a finger as he exited the room, then sighed. Looks like her questions probably wouldn't get answered… And it looks like this would be the end of them both… Sighing, she trudged over to Marshall's bed and took him into her arms, positioning his head to rest on her shoulder. Her heart sunk. Just knowing that he couldn't love her made her feel pathetic for even trying… She promised herself that if The Hunter didn't get to them first, she'd kill herself and hide out in Hell for a while. If she did do that though, it would result in Marshall being reduced to-no…

Rue didn't want to think of what would happen to him. First save Marshall, then kill herself. "Please… Please stay strong…" She whispered, giving his body a gentle squeeze before heading out the door. Cake had to be somewhere nearby… Maybe she could help… After asking random nurses around, Rue finally made her way to the front door and outside.


	12. Chapter 12: Mental Instability

**Chapter 12: Mental Instability**

Marshall gasped for air suddenly. His eyes locked onto Rue's face for a moment, and he stood to his feet. "Natanya, run!" he gasped out as he saw her, taking her arm and running towards the door. "He's coming! We have to get out of here!" This happened only for an instant before his eyes cleared, and a puzzled expression crossed his face. "Uh… Rue?" he asked, utterly bewildered. "What in the world just happened?"

His eyes surveyed the hospital, and he frowned in confusion. "I'm so confused. I was charging at… AH!" He cried out and grabbed his head as an unfamiliar woman's face appeared in his brain. For some reason, the image physically hurt. He winced and took another couple steps, before being assailed by another image… a different girl, vampire this time.

She was smiling, laughing. He took another step – cooking food in the treehouse?… another – some sort of rehearsal dinner? Losing his balance, he stumbled and crashed over into Rue… his head colliding with her knee. Slumping to the ground, he lay there… his eyes wide. All he muttered though was, "Somebody… opened… the… doors…"

The lady at the front desk's eyes shot up as Marshall started running around like a lunatic. Rue's reaction was quite the same… She didn't really know how to react to this. She just kept staring at him with glassy eyes. As soon as he crashed onto the floor, the lady began to write something down. "…Lemme guess, you were 'n the mental part o' th' hospital, right…?"

Shaking her head, Rue picked up the curled up Marshall once again. Bouncing him like a little child, she cooed, "It's going to be alright… Relax…" Just so he wouldn't give her a funny look, she hissed in his ear, "Quit acting like a fool in front of everyone! You'll give everything away!" Flashing a sweet smile at the lady, she backed out the door and set Marshall down and gripped his shoulders. "What the heck just happened to you?! I was almost scared to death that you were dead!"

Marshall said nothing, or rather nothing that made any sense to Rue. He simply kept repeating the words over and over again. "Somebody has opened the door. Somebody has opened the door. Somebody has opened the door." It was bad… really bad. He could barely think as various thoughts assaulted his brain. It was as if a flood of memories was threatening to drown him, and he couldn't get to the surface as hard as he tried. He was drowning in memories, as he attempted to seal them behind doors once more and make some sort of sense out of the world.

He looked at Rue, as if he were completely confused and trying to shuffle through his mind to figure out who in the heck she was. "Rue," he finally said, as the name clicked once more in his brain. "Get me somewhere I can lie down and think. Otherwise… I'm afraid I might just go insane. Fionna's place will do nicely…" He winced as he lowered his head. "Fly. I'll follow."

Yanking her hands away from him, she forced herself to give a shaky nod. "…I don't want you hurting yourself again… I'm going to carry you…" Before he could even open his mouth to protest, Rue had already tied her jacket around her waist, scooped him up, and began flying at top speed to the treehouse. It took only a few minutes to reach the treehouse. The living room window was open like earlier…

Wait, how long had it even been since they were put into the hospital? It could've been days… Something suspicious could be going on… Rue didn't think she had time to turn around and find somewhere else to go, so she folded her wings against her back and dove in. Once she set Marshall on the couch, she sat by his side and worriedly glanced down at him. "…Are you okay? Can I get you anything?… What's even going on?!"

Fionna and Cake looked up from the small dinner that they were eating and rushed upstairs as they heard Rue land above them. As they opened the door and saw her standing over Marshall, Fionna rushed over to his bedside as well. "What the glob is going on? And if Marshall Lee isn't well yet, why in Ooh did you remove him from the hospital?"

Marshall looked up at the three girls and shook his head, still unclear and mind pounding. "You three need to get out of here for a while. I need some time to rest, and think, and…" He shivered as yet another fit of memories washed over him. Then he muttered, "The Hunter lives forever. He is a demon, but also a God. He is as wily as the devil, and as controlling as a dictator. When he is around, you can trust nobody." With those words, he promptly passed out.

"What the heck was that supposed to mean?" Fionna asked, looking at Marshall bewilderingly. Then she glanced between Cake and Rue. Motioning for them to leave the now unconcious Marshall alone, she exited the room, saying "The three of us need to talk."

Tears brimming her eyes, Rue turned her head away. "I-I don't want to talk about this now…" She gulped and shuffled over to the window. "…I'm worthless… Sorry…" Rue mumbled, crossing her arms. She slid her arms under the others' sleeve and dug her nails into her wrists attempting to draw blood. Knowing her fate was nearly impossible to take now… It was just a matter of minutes before she'd break down and go insane as well.

"…I-I just need to think… Please… Just leave me alone…" With that said, she slipped out the window and fell backwards. Rue swooped back up and landed on the roof, then proceeded to curl up into a ball and sob. It would take just one leap to end it all… Maybe she'd even forget all about Ooh… The priorities she made just minutes ago were forgotten, depression crashing over her like a sudden change in the tidal waves. She was drowning, but it was all in her head…

Fionna watched Rue fly out the window silently before turning to Cake and nodding her head. Cake stretched into a ladder that allowed Fionna to walk outside up to where Rue was standing. When Fionna stepped off, Cake stretched up so that she was standing next to Rue and Fionna. "Sorry," Fionna said as she sat down next to Rue and placed her hand on the young Demon's shoulder. "You have me as a friend. Its now impossible for you to be alone at a time like this."

Cake sat down on the other side and placed her paw on Rue's back. "One for all, and all for one. Heroes to the bitter end."

Fionna stared out at the Candy Kingdom and surrounding areas in thought. Then she said, "I don't know what happened today, why Cake took you to the hospital, or even why you never found the plants, but I can tell what you are thinking right now. I'm all too familiar with it myself… but it doesn't matter. You are thinking about the fact that you can't handle whatever just happened. You don't have to. You have me and Cake. WE can handle anything, if the three of us are willing to work together."

Rue jerked her hand away from Fionna's and hugged her knees tighter. It was too hard to keep everything in now… Everything she told Marshall, she still hadn't told Fionna… The truth was spit out, her fear of their response numbed. Who would even care once she was dead? "…Cake was right when you first met me…" She gulped, "…You don't understand, do you?! Look at me!"

Rue suddenly jerked her head up and glared at them, her eyes darkening. "I'm a monster! I kill people for a living! And you… Oh you… You've come to trust me… I'm this-THIS terrible creature, and you've come to see the good in me? You must be insane…" Her rant was finished with a forced chuckle as she keeled over onto her side.

"…Oh, but who wouldn't be insane in this messed up place we have here…? W-We're all crazy… Ehehe… We're… All… Insane… And honey, you will never understand-" Her hand gripped Fionna's wrist, her gaze turning pleading as she spilled out, "You will never understand what I've been through…" Her sharp nails dug into her friend's wrist, already beginning to leave little crescents.

Fionna's response was quite surprising, even for someone who would be qualified a hero. She said nothing about the pain shooting up her hand, and instead used that gripped hand to pull Rue into a hug. "I can attest to one thing more than anything else. Rue. Maybe I don't know as much about you as most people. Maybe I can't comprehend where you came from. Maybe whatever dark area you crawled out of is beyond anything I can imagine. But it doesn't matter.

"You crawled out of it. You left that place. How you did doesn't matter. What happened before doesn't matter. You aren't a monster for one reason. You CARE, and you desire to change. It may be hard. It may be rough. As long as your heart is in the right place, though, there is nothing that we cannot accomplish. It doesn't matter what you've been through." She started quietly singing an old pop song whose CD she had found a while back, and BMO had played for her.

"Be tough and Courageous.

Be Brave and Be Strong

Right Here In My Arms Now

Is Where You Belong

So Dismiss Your Terrors

Forgetting Your Past

Both Now and Forever

Are All That Will Last

There Is No Nothing

That We Cannot Best

We're Fighting Together

And We'll Win The Test"

As she was pulled into the hug, Rue inhaled sharply, not daring to return the embrace in her state. The song droned on in her ears long after Fionna had finished, and they sat in silence, even if it first sounded like nothing but echoes. Glassy crimson orbs were beginning to show shards of black in them. Fionna's comforting did little to try to shine light on the darkness taking over Rue's mind.

For one, her brain refused to let it even pass through correctly… Two, she was broken enough to cause her to snap. The voices already started to fill her head. "Fionna…?" Rue choked, her hand clenching into a fist, "…If I ever snap and hurt you… Y-you need to kill me…" Her head turned so that she could properly look into her eyes. "…You're mortal… I-I don't want to hurt you… Please… D-don't question me…"

"Never," Fionna said, not moving from the embrace. "I trust you, even if you are not willing to trust yourself. You say there are voices inside your head telling you what to do. Well, mine are there too now." She leaned forward so that her mouth was right next to Rue's ear. "You can choose your fate." She whispered. "You do have a choice. Kindness, friendship, loyalty, passion. These are the true strengths in the world. You possess them."

The words were whispered in a way that made them echo, the way they would make a person feel like the thoughts were coming from inside. A combat. "They demand from you as well. Sacrifice comes from darkness, but also from light. Get up, angel of darkness. Spread your wings. MOVE! Stop listening to those other voices. Listen-To-Me! It is time to change!"

"…You really don't understand… If I kill you, it'd be almost impossible to get you back… I'd never want something like that to happen… You have to trust me on this." The words whispered in Rue's ears caused the other voice trying to corrupt her to send pain much like a jolt of electricity through her body. It was trying to fight back against Fionna… Her body spazzed and jerked. Deep chuckles of amusement roared in her ears as she was broken further, being used as a puppet. If this went on for much longer, there was no doubt she'd end up killing someone…

"I completely understand. You are the one who fails to. I am a hero, and that is defined as doing the right thing, regardless of what the personal cost may be. Killing you would be WRONG on a number of levels, and the bloodshed would haunt me forever. You aren't evil, just lost. Don't you get it?" She frowned and looked Rue in the face.

"The only reason you can't control this thing is because you will not try. You say you fight it, but that is NOT what you are doing right now. The voices get loud enough and you decide to listen. This one time… Just this once… CHOOSE to listen to me, instead." For a moment she was silent, before whispering, "You need to trust me on this… my friend."

"I-I can't!" Rue screeched loud enough for maybe even Marshall to be able to hear her. "You don't know what it's like! You don't know! You haven't been possessed! You haven't had to wake up every day and look in the mirror to be faced by a MONSTER! Are you blind?! Can you even see me what the heck am I?! What am I even good for besides taking others' lives?!" She paused only to prevent her nails from penetrating through Fionna's skin, ripping herself away from her.

"I'm a killer! I am STILL a killer! You don't understand that I can't fight these… These VOICES! I can't stop them! I can't CHOOSE not to listen to them! It is IMPRINTED in my BRAIN that I. AM. A. KILLER! I AM A GOOD FOR NOTHING, UNLOVABLE, LIFE-TAKING MONSTER! And NO ONE can fix that! It's out of my CONTROL!" The second she finished, she buried her face in her hands. "You wouldn't understand… You'd never understand what it's like to be powerless against the demon that is yourself…"

Fionna was silent for a moment, before whispering, "Nobody is powerless, but you are right that you could never win a fight against yourself… not when you look at it as if you already lost. No person walking onto a battlefield, declaring that they have already lost the fight, is going to walk off of that field alive. Don't you understand? It doesn't matter how strong it is, or how strong you are. Countless stories have been told of massive armies being taken down by smaller ones. Strength isn't the determining factor for victory, Rue. It's attitude."

Then, although not too hard, Fionna slapped Rue across the face. "You are who you choose to be. So stop acting like some sort of victim. Anybody can change their stars. Look at me? You think I was always some heroic, self-sacrificing, fearless hero? I started out a coward who could never do anything but hide under a rock. For the first 12 years of my life… that was the way I lived!"

Then her face darkened. "You're right. I don't understand. But I do KNOW that if you give in, you make yourself powerless. If you stop fighting, you let It win. You choose to listen, to stop fighting, thinking that it would be easier that way… thinking that heeding the voices is the only option, because the other one is too far-fetched, too hard to grasp, too impossible to even consider. I hear it in your voice, see it in your eyes. You aren't fighting to win, just to resist.

"If all you ever do is resist, you have to lose. No war can be one when one party refuses to go on the offensive. I know this; if you do not try to fight… you WILL always be under its control." Her face resolute, she added, "So I won't make it easy for you to give in. You want to give in, fine, but you'll have to choose to. I'm not going anywhere. I'm forcing you to make a choice. Either give in and kill me, or for once in your life… stop resisting and FIGHT back."

"F-Fionna, how do you expect me to have a good attitude if all I can think about is how many times I've failed others?!" Rue grabbed the blonde's shoulders and shook her vigorously. "Do you understand what clinical depression is?! Yeah, think of that but a hundred times worse! I have no choice but to think what I do! I have no choice but to become overpowered by them! I have no choice but to become what the voice makes of me! I can't!"

"Have you ever had to fight against something that's physically AND mentally overpowering you?! They can meld my thoughts into anything they want! I'm powerless! I can't do anything to stop it! You've never been possessed, have you?! Would you HONESTLY understand that what you're saying is easier said than done?!"

Rue clutched her reddened cheek and stayed silent for the rest of Fionna's rant, then finished with a sigh. "This… This is going nowhere… You wouldn't understand… I'm sorry… Just… Just leave me alone, okay?" With that said, she gave Fionna and Cake one last sorrowful glance before jumping off the roof of the house and swooping down into the forest.

Fionna watched her take off with a sigh. She didn't say anything to Rue, but as she flew off… She whispered, "Yes. I know what clinical depression is… I lived a year of my life in that state. And I know it isn't easy… but… It's necessary." Cake was silent, an unreadable and unsettling look across her face. A mixture of agreement, acceptance, and regret. Some people… No matter how much they wanted to change… Could never be anything more than a monster.


	13. Chapter 13: Miriam Natanya

**Chapter 13: Miriam Natanya**

Unbeknownst to the three of them, another pair of eyes had been watching and listening to all that transpired inside of the house. Cold, predator eyes. As Rue took off, the eyes that had been watching intently, seemed for a second to change from cold to remorseful… but then they changed back again.

For Rue, something strange and unexplainable happened, something bizarre that had never occurred before in her life. The hardened voice demanding obedience suddenly silenced. For a brief moment, there was blissful silence before another voice echoed forth. "Rue, Demon from Hell. Meet me in the flower garden, where we met this morning, tomorrow at noon. We have much to discuss, and I swear that there will be no harm or bloodshed… as long as you come alone." Then that voice too was gone.

It didn't take long for Rue's tears to cloud her vision and cause her to blindly skim over the treetops. Because the twigs and branches kept snagging at her clothing, she had to pause and free herself before she could keep going. Her shoulders ached from their constant drooping position, which wasn't making flying any easier. The voice got louder and screamed its laughter to make her whole body shake from the vibrations. Her body was thrown up into the air, but she urged herself to keep moving, flying farther and farther away from the people who actually cared about her. Of course, she was too blind to notice it… And then- Somehow it just stopped…

The original voice was gone. Complete and utter silence filled her brain. She was finally capable of controlling her own thoughts again… and then the other voice began to echo… Rue stopped, suspending herself in midair. Everything was silent except for the sound of her wings beating against the wind… This voice… It was The Hunter…? What was going on? What did he want from her? Did he overhear her conversation with Fionna or something? Or was he just constantly stalking her now?

Spotting a clearing, she dove towards it and planted her feet on the ground. She rubbed the tears from her eyes and trudged over to the nearest tree, then fell against it and curled herself up into a fetal position. Thoughts swarmed her once again. She let out a pained groan and clutched her forehead, not even paying any attention to the peculiar rustling coming from the branches above her.

"Who in the heck are you?" an obviously feminine voice asked as creature scampered out of the trees above and looked down at Rue. "Or…" She stopped for a second as she looked Rue up and down in bewilderment. "Perhaps a better question would be what the heck are you?" The being dropped down in front of Rue. She looked rather odd, as all creatures in Ooh seemed to.

Her skin, although somewhat the same color as Fionna, also had a very distinctly green tint to it. Her hair was wild, and thick, almost like thin vines instead of hair. There were also countless leaves tangled into it, though whether they were always there or simply there because the creature had just jumped out of the trees was uncertain. Her eyes were somewhat large, and the area that was typically white was emerald green. Her actual eye color was a much, much darker shade of green. At the end of her fingers, the fingernail area was the color of bark.

Her clothes were stitched together leaves into a sleeveless dress whose skirt ended slightly above the knees. Basically, she looked like some kind of tree nymph. A young tree nymph, actually. Her eyes looked curious and youthful, and she wasn't much taller or more mature in shape than a thirteen year old. The girl looked at Rue, and then reached up and touched the spot where the scar had once been but was now completely faded away. A look of sadness filled her eyes. Then she stepped back and curtsied. "Hai. I'm Marian Natanya. Nice to meet ya."

Prying her hands away from her forehead, Rue peered up at the girl, annoyed. Her head throbbed as the voice tried to control her again but somehow was failing for once… Not bothering to even respond to the girl's blunt and somewhat rude question, she groaned louder and returned to rubbing her temples.

Then, the name struck her as familiar… Too familiar… Marshall! Rue bolted upright, eyes suddenly wide. "Wait wait wait-… N-Natanya?!" Rue grabbed the gjrl's shoulders and shook her. "You're Natanya?! Y-you know Marshall?! What the heck is going on?!" Rue was desperate for answers. "You look so young though… What does this even mean?! What's going on?!" The muttering of her rambles was beginning to make her sound like she was some kind of insane, creepy, old lady.

Miriam, looking absolutely terrified at the sudden turn of events, and the bizarre reaction to her polite introduction, slipped out of Rue's grasp and backed away nervously. The bizarre reaction to her name made the girl look just a little bit terrified. "D…Do I know you, Miss?" She stammered out nervously. Then she said, "I dunno what is going on. Rule number one is not to leave the trees."

She looked down and kicked her bare feet awkwardly, the very image of a little girl caught doing something she wasn't supposed to be doing. "I'm sorry. But you stopped right under me, and I've never seen somebody like you before." The name Marshal seemed to have no meaning to her whatsoever. "I've never left the tree before," she said quietly. "And I'm only 12 years old." She glanced around with wide eyes. "Am I famous out here or something?"

The hope drained from Rue as she noticed Miriam's terrified expression. Sliding her hands off of Miriam, she slumped back down against the tree and groaned. "Noooo… You don't know me… I'm sorry…" She swatted her hand at the girl to gesture for her to leave. "You don't want to talk to me… I'm just a nobody… Go…"

"And if you've never left this tree before, why didn't you? Twelve years is a long time… I suggest you actually go explore the world instead of talking to some random demon spawn you've just met…" Rue flipped her hood up and turned onto her side, then curled up once again. She responded coldly. "I don't know if you're "popular" or not… Why not go see if you are? It'd probably make your life a little more interesting than watching bugs eat away at bark all day."

Miriam shook her head quickly. "I'm a leaf girl. Leaving the trees is dangerous and deadly and not allowed." She glanced around before leaning in and whispering, "Nobody is supposed to know that we exist, so you are going to have to keep my coming to visit you a secret." Then she raised her eyebrows indignantly. "Watching bugs is very awesome, thank you very much. As is bark and leaves. Don't act like my people are lame or anything. You never even met us before. We are a secret species that has existed for three hundred years. That makes us awesome."

"And you…" she said as she walked over and sat down next to Rue, "seem to have some self-esteem issues." She glanced around again before whispering. "Voices inside your head too, huh? Those are super annoying, aren't they? Mommy says that if you are good and obedient though, they will go away." She looked regretfully back up at the tree. "Doesn't look like mine will be going away any time soon, huh?"

"…Well, if leaving your tree is "deadly" and "not allowed"…" Rue made air quotes for a stupid effect, "Why did you jump down for me? Shouldn't you be dead or something?" Rue scrunched up her nose. "Uh… Whatever you say, princess… Yeah… Bugs are soooo entertaining…"

"You know what? You remind me of this creepy little girl back where I come from… Agitha… Yeah she collects bugs, and she's obsessed with them… She's around your age actually, and she creeps me out." She exhaled deeply. A little girl who she'd just met had the same issue as she had… So she wasn't as alone as she had thought…

"Kid… Okay, you know what? Your mom is an idiot." Rue meant it seriously, no matter how offensive it was. Looking at her with a blunt stare, she continued. "If you keep giving in, there's no way you'll ever be able to resist them even a little bit. Your mom is wrong…"

"I am a tree sprite," Miriam replied patiently, as if she were the one speaking to a little girl instead. After all, the vibe that she was getting off of Rue was 'grumpy-little-kid'. "I get my life from these trees. If I get too far away from them, I die. It's part of what makes my race the way it is. It also means I am part tree. As such…" she shrugged. "Anything to do with trees is fascinating to me."

She motioned to her hair and fingernails. "I even have bark growing on the end of my fingers, and my hair is all vine-y. Mostly what we do is sit and watch, 'cause… like… we are part trees. Trees don't like to interact with most creatures. Plus, my mom is all about breaking the voices in the head." She glanced around quietly. "Most people my age already have done it, but I'm just too curious and pranksterish." She chuckled in a girly way as she said it.

Rue shrugged, unsure what to say. She fiddled with the hems of her shirt and nibbled on her lip awkwardly. "…So you've never seen anything past the horizon? Do you ever even wonder what's out there…? Adventure is fun… I-It's too bad you're kind of… Y'know… anchored here…" There was another awkward silence filled with Rue's uncomfortable stares and the twiddling of her thumbs. There had to be a lot more like her, right? And also probably beings of other combinations… "…Well… If there's tree creatures, then is there also water creatures…?"

Miriam looked Rue over and said, "Well… At least it means that you are always near people who love you, care about you and value you. You can never be far from home. Watched lots of people adventuring… seems lonely. Home is really wonderful." Miriam dusted her clothes off, content that it seemed she was now having a normal conversation with this interesting creature. "Why do you want to leave home anyways?" She pondered for a second before adding, "And I dunno. I only see the creatures that walk by. No water elementals yet."

"…O-Oh…" She hiccuped. Rue never really HAD a family… It was always her fighting her dad and running, then fighting again. No one was ever there for her. She'd always had to rely on herself. Unfortunately, that had usually caused her to bottle up her emotions until she reached a breaking point, sending spiteful words flying like shattered glass as if a bullet had just passed through a window. She still didn't have anyone who she could fully trust, no matter how much they tried to convince her…

Running led to adventure, adventure led to more running. Now that Rue thought of it, she didn't really have a choice but to keep adventuring. There wasn't really a home for her… The closest she had ever gotten to home was the comforting touch of the one she had fallen in love with what seemed like ages ago. But she was forced to run… Always forced to run…

"…Adventure… It's about… Seeing new sights… Breathing new air… Having new experiences… Falling… In… Love…" Rue choked on the word "love". Having it always mean maybe a little too much to her, it was painful to mention. Why did she even mention it? She had pretty much just exposed a bit of her emotional wound to the girl. Of course, she probably wouldn't even understand…

"Ohhh…" Miriam said with a nod of her head. "Love is a very strange thing. I'm only 12 so I dun really understand anything about it yet, but Mother…" she trailed off quietly. "I feel like if she wasn't stuck to the tree she wouldn't be around for very long at all." She paused as she reflected on that statement for a moment.

"You must be suffering from love sickness too. We don't really have to worry about that since we are only a small number of people. We don't really need to wander around to meet the other Tree Sprites. 'Sides," she motioned to the gigantic woods running in all directions. "We can leave this specific tree right here for longer periods of time, like a week or two. We just can't leave the forest. Well… everybody except Mother can leave this tree."

"So… we get to watch some adventure. Lots of things can happen in a dangerous forest. I see new things all the time, like you for instance. New experiences… We are trees. Trees don't really want new experiences outside of a forest. Unlike other races, we are quite happy with the kind of lives that we get to live." She turned to look Rue in the eyes. "Isn't that better than constantly wandering trying to FIND a life where you can be happy? Having one where you already are?"

Rue responded in a croaky voice once more, "…Okay…" She was on the verge of tears again, and there was no way she was going to stick around for this little girl to watch her cry. Of course, the reason she'd flown away in the first place was because she was crying… Just keep running. Home… His arms… The way his lips felt on hers… How he would never see her as the same person… She wouldn't have had to run if she'd just told him straight up… He would probably still be there with her… She would have no reason to fall so quickly for anyone just to see if she would have the same type of love that they had… Pathetic.

…Okay, there was probably something up with this girl's mother… Why couldn't she leave the tree? Was she insane or something? What even happened to her to cause her to be the way she was? Rue sat there in silence, instead of asking more questions to the girl. She felt unloved, alone… She just wanted to die and never come back to Ooo. After all, Fionna would never understand her situation with being possessed, Marshall would never love her, Prince Gumball probably hated her now, and The Hunter was going to find her and murder her any minute…

"You are sad," the little girl said quietly as she sat down and leaned against Rue. "I can tell. Tree Sprites are very good at reading emotions." She set her hand on Rue's shoulder and said, "Don't be afraid to meet with him tomorrow. At least at this meeting, he doesn't mean you any harm." Then she blinked and stood up abruptly. She glanced around nervously, tapping her fingers to hair her nervously.

"I didn't just… no no no… Miriam you idiot." She began pacing around in circles, humming nervously too herself while her brain raced. Then she sighed and muttered, "Whatever, too late now." Sitting down once more next to Rue, well aware of the look that was being shot in her direction, she muttered, "Tree Sprites have this interesting abilitiy sometimes. It's one of the main reasons that mother wants us to never leave the tree, or be found by other races. She says that if anybody finds out about what we can do… we will never be left alone, or safe, again.

"You see, Rue… Tree Sprites have the ability to see into the future." She quickly followed that up with, "Not anything super specific, nor any major details. But when we are close enough to somebody who is seriously concerned about something… the ability has the chance of activating without our knowledge. I don't know what I was talking about, so I can't explain it. I don't know what you are thinking about, so that won't help me either. All I know is what I said. The meeting tomorrow will change your future forever, in a positive way. Don't be afraid to meet with him. At least at this meeting, he doesn't mean you any harm."

So… This girl was kind of a psychic or something…? And… She just saw the future for her…? Rue turned her head and stared at Miriam, terrified of what else she might be capable of. What was Rue even thinking? She herself was able to summon around 50 shadows up from behind people to terrify them, so why should she be scared of a little girl, much less, The Hunter?

Raking her fingers through her hair, she groaned and thumped her head onto the ground again. "…I don't even know if I want to go meet him… Why does he want me to leave? Did he REALLY know my parents?! Is my mom really dead?! How does he know so much about me? What does he even want from me?!"

By the end of her questions, she was sniffling. A few tears had already begun to roll down her cheeks. Her mind was telling her to run, but her body was telling her she was too weak to. Rue grabbed the sides of the tree and attempted to haul herself to her feet, but only ended up falling back over. She let out a sharp yelp as her body collided with the ground again, sending more tears out. Giving up, she curled up onto the ground and sobbed.

Miriam frowned quietly, while kicking the ground apologetically. "As I just said, Rue… I really couldn't possibly tell you anything else. That glimpse is all I've got, and I already told you absolutely everything I can about it." Her eyes narrowed though. "It is a cautioning warning to you though. We can see paths, negative or positive, and I can tell you this. There is really only a right or wrong answer to everything in life, regardless of how many different options you may choose. There is a negative option and a positive option.

"At this moment, I can assure you that the option that will send your life in a positive direction is going to speak with The Hunter. Bad things may happen there. Nightmares you want to forget may come back. I don't know. Current good or bad things happening, this event is unclear. But in the long run, if you want your life to advance in a positive direction, you cannot afford to not speak with him tomorrow."

Her eyes raised suddenly as she looked up into the tree. "Mother is calling me…" She kicked her foot nervously, before glancing around. "I have to go. If she finds out that I was speaking to a non-Tree Sprite, there will be heck to pay." She smiled nervously. "Bai now, Rue." Then, just as suddenly as she had appeared from the mess of tree leaves above, she disappeared.


End file.
